NEWS BY MAIL

Hokitika Guardian, 26 March 1927, Page 4

NEWS BY MAIL

SEAMAN’S PLUCK. LONDON, Feb. 5. lit spite of a broken spine. Mr Robert. Thomas, 84, a seaman, of Burlington stnel, Barry Dock, Clhimorgan, has endured a 8000 miles journey on a .stretcher. He is now in the hospital at Barry, unable to move, but happy bet a use ills greatest wish has been gratified. Last September Mr Thomas, one of the crew of the steanur Rotliioy. which was in 1 'l>iiatleljihi Harbour. was struck by a derrick and thrown into ortv of 1 lie holds. With liis skull fractured and his spine broken lie was taken lo the hospital, where, although paralysis set in, his condition improved. Ho repeatedly expressed his earnest desire to go home to his wife and child, and after extensive preparations he was despatched on his homeward journey. Nurses were provided and a special saloon look him to New York Harbour. From there he was taken to the hospital aboard the White Star liner Majestic, and when she docked at Southampton on Friday he was carried to an 'ambulance, reaching Barry on Saturday. Soon afterwards his wife and little daughter went to see him.

HER FEET CUT OFF. LONDON, Feb. 5. Although both her feet had been severed by a train in James street Station. Liverpool, on the Mersey underground railway, last night, after she luul fallen in front of a train in the presence of a large crowd of passengers, Miss Sarah Farrall. aged 53, of HeswOlf. Wirrnl, appeared unmoved by pain and spoke calmly to her rescue:;,:.

When dragged from under the train Miss Farrall was quite conscious ami r.s sin; was taken in the lilt Iron’, tile station fo awtiit the ambulance she made no complaint of her pain and gave her name and address to a constable. Her only thought was of her pet terrier dog. Last night she was stated to be in a critical condition. ETHER KIHES TRAIN. WARSAW. Feb. 5. A passenger yesterday brought into a compartment of a Warsaw-to-Lem-berg train a bottle of ether. Noticing the odour, another passenger called the g-l ml, who approached the bottle with a lantern, causing an explosion. The carriage was set on lire and was destroyed in 15 minutes, fortyone people were terribly burned, many fatally and others were blinded. 20 WILD IJOARS SHOT. HARIS, Feb. 5. No fewer than 2G wild boors ten to the guns of Count de Montaigu and of M. le M intier during a shoot with heaters yesterday in Landal W nod at Combourg, near St. Main. The wild boar lias long been extinct in Knglantl, hut is still to be found in considerable numbers in many of the woods and forests of France.

The Duke of Westminster recently transferred his pack of boarhounds from the south of France to the forest of Hu. near Dieppe, where he has rented the shooting rights. RANK CHIEF SHOT DEAD. NEW YORK, Feb. 5. Mr William Elliott Knox, president of tiie Bowery Savings Bank, one of New Yorks strongest financial institutions, shot himself dtVul this afternoon. Tie had been resting in the special restroom of the bank’s sumptuous new building in 42nd Street and when summoned to the telephone by a clerk replied that lie would ho down immediately. When five minutes later the clerk returned to summon hint he found him dead. He had bred a bullet through his heart. Bora in Ireland in ISG2. Air Knox came to New York when la bpy and entered the employ of the Bowery Bank 11 years ago as a clerk. He eventually reached the presidency of the institution, and so esteemed was lie by his fellow-bankers that he was elected President of the American Bankers’ Association in 1924. His associates say lie was much depressed recently by the theft of £15.000 by throe of the bank’s cashiers in whom he took a personal interest.