FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE WEST COASTLOSS OF THREE LIVES.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XX, Issue 1151, 3 November 1863, Page 4

FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE WEST COASTLOSS OF THREE LIVES.

On Saturday last intelligence was received by the Government of an accident at the river Grey, which terminated in the death of Mr. Charles Townsend, superintendent of the Government store on the coast, and two men' named Peter Michelmore, and Solomon. It appears that Mr. Townsend went to the Hokatika river, for the purpose of bringing a whaleboat, belonging to Government, up to the Grey. On the morning of the Bth October the party, consisting of Mr. Townsend, W. Sherrin, Simon (a Maori), Peter Michelmore, and Solomon (a Maori), 'started from the Hokatika and.reached the mouth of the Grey at about half-past two p.m. Here they I found the sea running so heavijy on the bar, that a Consultation pnsued as to whether it would be better t& beach the boat, or attempt to carry her over the bfir into the river. The latter course was decided upon, and sad to say, ended in the deaths of Mr. Townsend, Peter, and Solomon. Mr. C. Townsend was a member of a family widely known in the province as among the earliest Canterbury settlers. He had resided for some years in Victoria, and on his return to this province, started almost immediately for the West Coast. We extract the following aocoupt of the catastrophe from the columns of the

' Press' of yesterday, as given by Mr. W. Sherrin, one of the survivors Friday, 9th. This day I have to tell of a very distressing and fatal accident. We started from the Hokatika about 8 o'clock, a heavy sea on the bar. We pulled out in the breakers and got away very easily, although there were six lines of breakers, and steered for the Grey. We got to that river about 2*30 in the afternoon, and found a bad sea running with a heavy ground swell. Mr. Townsend wished to beach the boat, and Simon was in favor of doing so, but they were over-ruled by Solomon and Peter. X was in favor of the beach myself, but supposing that Peter understood the thing better than I did, raised no objection, and after a few minutes laying on our oars, we pulled for the Grey. After pulling for about five minutes, a very heavy sea was nearly on board us, and Peter got nervous, and let the. boat broach to, and the consequence was that Simon jumped up in a very great state of excitement and seized the steer oar, but too late, as while he was getting her before it another heavy sea followed her, and nearly over-ended her. She filled and capsized immediately, and the force of the sea sent me down to a considerable depth, and when I rose to the surface I swam to the boat, and got on her. There I found Peter holding on. at her bows. I was scarcely on board before I was washed off again, and when I rose and gained the boat I could not see Peter, but he rose at the bow of the boat apparently dead in about half a minute after. Mr. Townsend and Solomon, each with an oar, were about 50 yards to leeward. I held on to the boat for about half a minute the second time, I made her before I saw Simon, and when I saw him he was making for the beach on an oar and three cedar boards, the stern seats of the boat. He advised me to stick to the boat, and get the other men on board, and said that he would fetch either a boat or canoe. All the time I was talking and looking about me, I was getting my clothes ofl, as I was afraid of getting my shirt

around my arms, in case of being swept off. As I was in pretty comfortable quarters, all things considered, I began to think of assisting Mr. Townsend and Solomon on to the boat, when I was addressed by Solomon as follows:—"Willy, stick to the boat, don't lose the boat; please come and fetch me. lam very tired, my clothes are very heavydo come; I can't swim only a little." So I went to his assistance, and just as I reached him a heavy sea took the boat some fifty yards further, making it about a hundred yards off me. Taking his oar under my arm I struck out for the boat with him in tow. When I got within thirty yards of the boat I was completely exhausted, and then I put the paddle end of the oar in my mouth, and used both hands in swimming and succeeded in getting him on to the boat, Mr. Townsend still swimming but in an opposite direction to the boat. I intended to fetch him as soon as I had recovered breath, but a sea coming I had to look out for myself, but when it passed I could not see him, and never saw him alive again. A heavy sea turned our boat over again, and having the oar that Solomon was swimming on I began to pull for the shore, Solomon steering and sculling with the steer oar. About a hundred yards from the beach Solomon and myself were washed off the boat by a heavy sea, and as I rose and swam for the boat I missed Solomou, and never saw him again. I stuck to the boat about ten minutes longer, and seeing a smooth time, I jumped into the sea and swam ashore, when Tainui caught me as I reached the shore, for I could not stand, although I could swim well; my legs seemed powerless. A few minutes after I landed, Mr. M'Cann, the master of the Gypsy, came to me and gave me a shirt and trousers; they informed me that Simon had landed about a quarter of an hour before me, quite safe but fearfully exhausted. The dead body of Peter came on shore the first thing, and Mr. Townsend's blankets and one stocking, and my boots. The boat was all broken to pieces, and I cut the mast and sail adrift, as I could get no way on the boat with these dragging in the water. I landed about 5.30 in the afternoon, after being in the water about three or three and a-lialf hours, the only survivors of the five men being myself and Simon. The last I heard of Mr. Townsend was a few minutes before I lost sight of him, and I distinctly heard him praying, and Solomon was praying a good deal on the boat with me. All the men lost their presence of mind with the exception of Simon, who was brave, cool, a#d collected all the time that he was within ■peaking distance of me. Saturday, 10th. This morning, Mr. Macan and one of his men kindly came and offered their services towards making some coffins, and while they were so engaged, John Smith and I, in company with the Maoris, crossed the river in search of any bodies the tide might have washed up, and succeeded in finding the body of Mr. Townsend, and, as I was very weak, Smith and myself took the boat back, and left the Maoris to look after the body of Solomon, but after looking for three or four hours they gave it up, as they said that the body could not pass a certain point on the coast, and that it had not drifted on shore on the Grey side of that point. They proposed looking for his body on the morrow. Mr. Smith went up the river Grey and brought down Mr. Dobson's.men to assist in burying the bodies found ; so, after dinner, we crossed the river and buried them side by side in an old Maori encampment. I went with them to see them interred, but from my weakness I could not assist them in their charitable office. We read the burial service, which was attended by Tarapui and some other natives.