Fatal Accident.

Hastings Standard, Issue 167, 10 November 1896, Page 4

Fatal Accident.

A young man name 1 .James Henderson, eldest son of Mr I)avid Henderson. wheelwright, of Parawai, Thames, accidentally shot him-df on Thursday afternoon. It appears that deceased", who was a blacksmith by trade, and w irked at Price lirothers" foundry, did not feel very well, and consequently did not proceed to his work'. As the day wore on, however, lie appeared to be much better, and about a quarter to four he picked up his Martini-llenri ritle and told his mother that he was going out to have a shot at a pheasant that was in the habit of coining about the house. About a quarter of an hour afterwards his mother heard a report from the pun, but took little notice of it. As the evening wore on, however, sin- became anxious about bis nonarrival home, and about six o'clock sent his brother David, who had just returned from his work, out to see what had become of him. David, after some considerable search, found his brother lying in a shallow creek with his body and legs under water and his shoulders and head above it. with a bullet-wound in the centre of his forehead, and quite dead. He found the riile about 15yds up the side of a steep bank adjoining, and it contained a discharged cartridge. It is supposed that deceased was endeavoring to get down the bank, and whilst doing so the ritle accidentally discharged. Deceased was about_ '2O rears of acre, and a most promising poung man. He was a petty officer in the local Artillery corps and a firstclass shot—in fact lie took second prize in the contest for the rifle chamj)ionship at the New Zealand Rifle Association's meeting held at Christchurch two years ago, and had also won manv local prizes. One sorrowful feature about the sad affair is that he was shortly to be married.