SHOOTING ACCIDENT.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIII, Issue 1711, 12 January 1920, Page 5

SHOOTING ACCIDENT.

BOY’S SAD DEATH. THE CORONIAL ENQUIRY, An inquest was held this morning, before Mr A. J. Graham, J.P. (acting Coroner), concerning the death of a boy 15 years of age named Ilersal Henry Bennett, son of Mr John H. Bennett, of Kauwhata, who died at the hospital last week following on a shooting accident on December 29. The jury consisted of Messrs H. G. Nicholls, C. H. Bethell, H. F. Bishop and J. H. Cribb. Sergeant Fitzpatrick represented the police, and Mr H. R. Cooper appeared for the father of the deceased boy. EVIDENCE OF BOY’S FATHER. John Henry Bennett, farmer, of Kauwliuta, father of the deceased boy, was the first witness, and he gave evidence of identification. Ho stated that on the 29th December he was going into a paddock for a load of wood when ho hoard his boy call out, “Oh I Oh! Dad!” His son had been taken inside the house from the landing of a loft. The boy was crying and was bleeding badly from a wound above the left knee. Witness said to him, “What the dickens have you been doing?” and ho replied, “Don’t worry, Dad.” Witness’s sister dressed the boy’s wounds, and ho was then brought to Palmerston North to Dr. Bott. The latter

ordered his removal to tho hospital, to which ho was taken and handed over to the charge of tho matron. Witness saw tho boy several times afterwards, and on New Year’s Day ho said ho felt that if ho could got out of bed hq could go home. On January 4 the boy informed him that ho had_ undergone another operation on the previous day. Ho complained that he had shooting pains up his back, and witness advised him to bo sure and tell the sisters, to which lie replied, “All right, Dad.” On tho following Tuesday, 6th inst, witness was sent for by tho hospital authorities. Tho boy’s jaws wore then looked, but ho could speak, and he said ho had informed tho sisters of the pains, and that one of the sisters replied, “You must expect a lot of that.” Witness asked the boy when ho felt his jaws stiff, and ho replied that it happened that morning. Ho said they dressed his leg on the Tuesday afternoon for tho first time since Sunday. Witness saw Dr. Forrest, who said that lockjaw had sot in. Witness remained with tho boy until 4.30 a.m. on January 7, and came back at 10 o’clock and remained with him until ho died that day. Witness had a nephew named Percy Hazelwood staying with him on tho farm. He (witness) had a gun which took n small short cartridge, and Ids son and Percy Hazelwood had been in a loft shooting birds and through tho discharge of tho gun tho injuries to witness’s leg were occasioned. . . , In reply to Mr Cooper, witness stilted that his boy said that nothing was done when ho complained about the pains, and that the wound was not looked at from the time of the operation on Saturday untll the*'MEDICAL EVIDENCE. Dr Belt was the next witness ■ Ho deposed that on 29th December last deceased was brought to his surgery, and he then had a blood stained bandage round the noddle of, his left thigh. Without examining the wound witness sent the boy to the hospital. Ho operated on the boy at the hospital within an hour—possibly within half-an-hour —of seeing him at witness’ surgery. He was suffering from a ragged gunshot wound of the size of a florin on tho inner side of tho left thigh. A considerable, quantity of small shot, portions of clotmng, a id wails wore removed, and provision made for drainage on tho outer side of the thigh. The wound was thoroughly cleaned out, and was not again dressed until the following Thursday (three days later) Witness then removed the packing, and as the wound was apparently clean, ho arranged to suture the wound on the Saturday. 1 his was done on the- Saturday, a counter opening on the outer side being left open for drainage. As was the custom in these cases since the war, the wound, by bis direction, was not examined or interfered with until tho following Tuesday, and if it had gone on satisfactorily it would not have been dressed for another two or three days. From Hie time the bov was first operated upon until the time of his death witness saw him at least once a day, sometimes' twice. On either the Sunday or Monday before, bis death he complained of a certain amount of pain in the wound, but it was not Biifticientlv severe to warrant interference with the wound as a wound of that severity always caused pain. The only thing he asked for on the Tuesday morning was to bo put out on the verandah : he did not then complain about anv pain. On tho _ Tuesday afternoon Dr Forrest rang up witness and said that deceased had developed tetanus’ symptoms, and that ho had already given deceased anti toxin for tetanus. Witness 1 could not get to the hospital until that , evening, when deceased said ho had first noticed tho trouble in the jaw a littlo on tho Monday night. That was the first time deceased had complained about Ids jaw. Witness saw deceased the next morning, and ho was given largo doses of anti-tetanus serum. Iho cause of tetanus setting in was infection at tho time of the gunshot wound. Witness had had experience at the front, but the patients there rarely developed tetanus before they loft tho clearing stations. Tetanus usually set in within eight days,_ in which case the chance of tho patient coming through was very small. Ho was satisfied thee had been no neglect or lack of skill in the treatment of the lad.

In reply to Mr Cooper, witness said the infection may have come from deceased’s clothing or the dust on tils skin. There was nothing at the time of the operation to show that tetanus might set. in. There was no reason to suppose that tetanus would set in as cases were rare in this country. The disease could not. be detected because of shooting pains. The nurses did not report anything special to witness about the boy’s condition. Once tetanus was developed it was generally agreed that nothing could bo done; amputation had in some cases been tried without result. On each occasion on which witness saw the wound everything was in good order; he had no occasion to suspect trouble at nil. MEDICAL SUPERINTENDENT’S EVIDENCE.

Dr. Forrest, medical superintendent in charge of the Palmerston North Hospital, deposed that deceased arrived at tho hospital on December 29, and witness gave the anesthetic while Dr. Belt cleaned out tho wound. All tho diseased tissues wore cut away, and tho portions of clothing, etc., cleaned out. The wound remained healthy, and a few days later Dr. Belt decided to suture it. On the afternoon of January 5 the boy developed symptoms ot lockjaw, and witness gave him the antitoxin, and notified Dr. Belt of what had occurred. That evening witness again saw the boy and gave him another injection of the anti-toxin. He had two or three convulsions during the night and was much worse tho next morning. Tho rule at tho hospital was that in such a case as this it was Dr. Belt’s case. As soon as witness know the lad had lockjaw; he gave the anti-toxin and rang up Dr.’ Betty there was no waste of time. If anything went wrong with the inmates at the hospital the nurses reported to him at once. It was not usual to open up and ro-dresa wounds if a patient was getting on all right. The infection had occurred at the time of the injury. Witness saw deceased two or three times each day, and except for a slight pain in the leg tho boy seemed to bo getting on well until witness received a report from the. matron.

In reply to Mr Gooper, witness said there might bo a wound healed over and tetanus set in. The wound was quite healthy

on the Tuesday morning. Tetanus was very rare in New Zealand; he had only seen one other case at the hospital. It was not usual in New Zealand to take special precautions against tetanus, although at the front precautions were taken as a matter of routine. If tho boy hud been given an injection at the time lie went info the hospital witness did not think that would have saved his life. The deaths from tetanus cases numbered about 80 per cent. It was not reported to witness that the boy complained of pains in his back. In reply to the Acting-Coroner, the witness said that he would certainly advocate administering scrum in similar cases in future, although ho did not think that it would have saved the boy’s life in this case. HOW THE ACCIDENT OCCURRED. Percy Robert Hazelwood, cadet in the Customs Department, and at present on a

visit to his uncle, John H. Bennett, was tho next witness. Tho deceased was witness’s cousin. On December 29 witness and deceased wont to a loft on his uncle’s farm to shoot blackbirds. They had a double-barrelled shotgun with No. 10 shot, and witness was carrying the gun. On reaching tho loft deceased was standing by tho side of tho door and witness was standing in the middle of tho doorway. Witness had his hat on, and deceased said : “Stand aside and take your hat oil or they will see vou” (meaning tho birds). Witness had hold of tho gun with his right hand, with his finger on tho trigger, and with tho other hand ho removed his hat. As he removed his hat he throw it into a corner, -swinging the gun round and it wont off, the charge entering deceased’s leg Ho could not account for the gun going off ns tho trigger was hard to pull. Witness had previously had experience of using firearms. After the accident witness helped deceased out of the loft, and ho was removed to tho house, and afterwards taken to Palmerston North. Constable Madden deposed that ho intorviewed doceasocl ftt tho hospital on tho 2nd inst., and obtained from him a statement in respect of tho accident. In tho course of the statement deceased said that ho and his cousin were in the loft of the cowshed on tho 29th December for the purpose of shooting blackbirds Percy Hazelwood carrying tho gun. The gun went off accidentally and tho charge ontered deceased’s left leg. DEATH FROM TETANUS. The Acting-Coroner said it was quite dear that death was the result of tho accident, and also that everything possible was done at the hospital, it being evident that the germ was there at tho time of the " The ’verdict was that deceased died from lockjaw as the result of a gunshot wound accidentally received at Kauwhata on December 29.