WANGANUI SENSATION.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 5 January 1929, Page 5

WANGANUI SENSATION.

PROBABLE CAUSES. WANGANUI, Jan. 4. Further particulars regarding the St. Hill Street tragedy on Wednesday evening go to show that at periods when negotiations were being made by the police and friends through the window to get Allen to listen to* reason he was most friendly, and at other times quite rambling in his conversation. On one occasion he rein a r keel that it must be dry work out there waiting, and did the boys, want a drink. The offer was accepted in the hope that Allen would open the window wide enough to enable- the police to get hold of his hand. Allen passed •a bottle of aera.ted water out, bat did not open the window very wide. When he ran short of matches one was placed on the sill at a time-, but again Allen only opened the window sufficiently to pick up the match. Eater in the- evening lie ran out of cigarettes, for he had been smoking almost continuously. A request for a packet was acceded to by the police:. A fact that may account for Allen’s queer attitude of late wa® that lie had been an inmate of the Wanganui Hospital! from October 9 to 17. Pirior to that he had been suffering from insomnia .and had complained only recently to friend® that lie could not sleep. Ealrlv in the evening of Wednesday last lie intimated) through the window that he wais well armed with Noble’s best No. 4 cartridges, and that lie would make a good job of anyone who tried to interfere with him. Letters left were to the Coroner, Mr J. S. Barton. S.M., to his mother, and) to Mrs West. It is gathered from the contents of one of these letters that he eJlearly intended to take liis life. A bystander who was near the window, in full view of Allen when the ammonia was turned on from the cylinder, said it discharged through the pipe into the shop with- a .series of throbs. At the sound of the first throb Allen jumped like, a- flash and rushed along behind the counter, found the pipe through which the fumes were pouring, and a second or so later the shot was fired.

Inquiry showed that Mrs Withey is progressing as well a.s can be expected, and spent a fairly comfortable night, hut she is not yet out of danger.