ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

Evening Star, Issue 10342, 16 June 1897, Page 4

ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

W. Harper, an old resident of Kauieri, Hokitika, was found dead in bed yesterday morning. Smoke was observed coming from the house where deceased lived by himself, and the neighbors went in and found Harper apparently suffocated. He must have been reading in bed and have fallen asleep, leaving a candle bumiog on a box beside him. On the candle burnii/g down it is supposed the box took fire, and the smoke suffocated the unfortunate man. The fUmes were ascending the wall when the neighbors entered. The deceased was about sixty years of age, and was greatly respected. A painfully sudden death (information of which was not telegraphed) occurred at the Wellington Hospital on Saturday morning. Mr Frank Basset:, a farmer at Ohariu, and a son of Mr Bassett, postmaster at that place, entered the institution for the purpose of going under an operation for an injury to one of his knees. He was placed under chloroform in the preseuce of Drs Cahill, Martin, Jame=, Pollen, and Ewart, but before the operation could be commenced he collapsed, and all efforts to restore vitality were unavailing.