INQUESTS, ACCIDENTS, AND OFFENCES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XII, Issue 4375, 20 November 1875, Page 2

INQUESTS, ACCIDENTS, AND OFFENCES.

All inquest was held at the Royal Mail Hotel, Ngaruawahia, on 10th Nov., on the body of the man which was found floating neal- Whatawhata. W. N. Searancke, Esq., presided as coroner. Captain Angus .Ross deposed that he was master of the steamer Blue-nose. He believe the body to bo that of Cornelius Kelly, otherwise Maurice O'Neale. Recognised it by the features and dress. He was drowned on the 11th August, by falling off the barge Bendigo, at Katanc, Waipa rivor ; he was going forward to clear the towline. An inquest was held at the Provincial Lunatic Asylum on the lGfch Nov., upon the body of a patient named George Lavepidgo. The evidence adduced shewed that the deceased, who was forty-two years of age, was admitted to the Asylum on the 13th of November, 1573, suffering " from insanity. Ho remained in his usual health for about six months, but from that time he grew worse. In the latter end of September last, he took to his bed, and died on the 13th inst. Dr. Aicken's evidence was also given, and in accordance with it, the jury returned a verdict of "death from general paralysis." An inquest was held on the SOfch October at the Nottingham Castle Hotel, Aber-crombie-street, by Dr. Philson, on the body of Ernest Albert McGrath, aged cue year and eleven months, the son of Constable McGrath, who was drowned in a tank, on previous day, at the Albert Police Barracks. The facts were, in the main, as already stated. Constable McGrath, the father of the child, stated that-the tank was a positive nuisance, besides being highly dangerous. He had repeatedly complained of it, and had once taken the Inspector of is'uisauces to view the place. The evidence of Dr. Hooper also proved the insecurity of the spot. The jury returned the following verdict: —" That this child met his death through falling into a water-tank, in tho Albert Barracks ; and the jury are of opinion that the City Improvement Commissioners are very much to blame for leaving the tank in such a dangerous state, and that the danger should have been averted long since." 1 An inquest on tho body of the unfortunate man, Henry Brown, who was drowned in crossing the Piako liiver a short time since, was held before Major George, at the store of Messrs. Mowbray and Evans, on Nov. 15. The evidence of James Walker, who found the body, was taken. Jartfes Black, a labourer, deposed than he warned deceased not to attempt to cross the river, but he persisted, and went. Mr. S. Tickle-

penny was foreman offthe jury, and a verdict drowned" was re- ; turned./ The deceased,.. 1 it; has "transpired, I was a new arrival, having-"pome out by the ' immigrant ship jßriiaah Empire a few weeks ago. He was..thirty r fiye years of age and nnmarried, and as far as cattle ascertained has no friehdp_.o£relatives in the'colony." ' : A fatal drowning accident occurred on |"-Nov,;is.-:Joseph-Winter r a.ibntcher-'s;Qrder-. man, employed by Mr. Hulme, was endea- | vouring .to ford the Kauwaeranga river, opposite the Parawai Gardens, when his horse plunged and threw him. The accident' was observed from the bank by George Robson jand Mark Donovan, the former of whom swam to Winter's assistance, while the latter proceeded lower down the river for the purpose of getting a canoe. Robson had reached to within six yards of deceased when he sank, and did not again rise. When the tide fell, the body was found by some Maoris who had observed the accident. An inquest was held same day, and a verdict of "accidental drowning" returned. The body found in the Kawaeranga on 14th Nov., has been identified as that of George Tavernor, formerly a member of the Armed Constabulary and clerk in Colonel Moule's office, recently working at Waikawau bush. He left there and went up the Kauwaeranga on the first of this month, and was last seen alive on the 3rd instant. He was then, and had for days, been mentally deranged from the effects of drink. When last seen by some persons he was kneeling in the dry bed of the creek. He had his hands stretched upwards, and would not answer them or go with them.- At the inquest the jury returned an open verdict of " Found drowned." An orderly returned from Katikati on Nov. 11, bringing confirmation of the intelligence of the capsizing of Alexander Anderson's boat on the Bth. A boat was picked up afterwards by Maoris and reported to the authorities, when boats were dispatched by the Government to search for the poor unfortunates missing. An orderly . was dispatched overland, and he brings the melancholy story that one of the passengers/ Murdoch, has been picked up alive, half perished, by Maoris. Anderson and Arthur Stewart were lost on the boat upsetting. Anderson was never seen ; he is supposed to have got entangled with an iron, plough. Stewart and Murdoch got on the bottom of the boat. After being there more than 12 hours, Stewart got exhausted and was drowned. Anderson is an old and respectable settler at Katikati. Arthur Stewart, one of Vesey Stewart's party, leaves a large family behind. Tauranga is full of mourning. On the morning of November 11 news was brought into Wangarei by Mr. W. Seccombe that Mr. Halse, baker, in the employ of Mr. R. Dent, had been found dead on the road between Wangarei and his residence at Nobes' Village. The intelligence cast quite a gloom over the whole settlement, as the deceased was generally liked for bis quiet, unassuming demeanour. It was supposed that either apoplexy or heart disease had been the cause of death, but the following day Dr. Sissons witnessed the body, and found that deceased's neck was broken. An inquest was held, when it was elicited from witnesses that the saddle of the deceased's horse had been picked up near to where deceased lay, and ' the horse had wandered some distance up the road. The jury returned a verdict of " Accidental death." Mr. Halse was in the habit of riding to and fro to business, and being a man ef over fifty years, he rode a particularly quiet hack, which seldom went out of a slow trot. The catastrophe is all the more strange from that fact. Mr. Halse, who was a steady and industrious man, leaves a wife and family to mourn his loss. The accident occurred as the deceased was coming in to business. ; Mr. A. Brown, of Taupiri, was accidentally drowned "off a barge at that place ; his body has not yet been found. The occurrence cast quite a gloom over this ' place when the news arrived, as -%e was generally known and respected. He was a | native of Somersetshire, England, and had been about nine years in the colony. A dreadful accident occurred at Paparata, on 27th Oct., to Mr. Joseph Cleary, which was ultimately attended with fatal consequences. It appears that he was bush felling on his land, when a tree suddenly gave way, crushing him dreadfully, and breaking his leg in two places. Some hours afterwards he was discovered by some of his neighbours, who did all that was possible to alleviate his sufferings. He was sent down by the Mercer morning train next day to the Provincial Hospital, where he was put under chloroform, and the thigh amputated by Dr. Philson, but he only survived the operation for a few minutes. A child three years of age, named Robert Baker, was hurt on 12th Nov., and died from the injuries received on the following Tuesday. The child was hurt by falling out, or being tumbled out, of a wheelbarrow down a steep incline in South Newton, near the foot of Gundry-street. From enquiries made by the police it appears that the accident occurred when the children were playing with the barrow. It appears from the enquiry made by the police that the boy, Peter McCabe, was wheeling the deceased, when I the barrow tipped on one side and threw him out. The boy's arm was injured, but not broken, by the barrow falling on it. After two days erysipelas set in, and terminated fatally. No blame is to be attached to the boy MeCabs, as the deceased's fall was accidental, and that was not the immediate auese of death.

A man, known by the name of Chriss, a passenger per s.s. Star of the South from Wellington for Levuka, was, on Nov, 3rd, reported to the police to be missing. Late on previous evening Chriss is known to have gone on the decK of the vessel, which was lying alongside the wharf, and since then nothing has been heard of him. The police have made enquiries, but so far without success. It is probable that he fell overboard from the vessel, as he was subject to tits, having Bad one during the passage from "Wellington. The missing man is a Dane, of about 25 years of age. An aged woman named Mrs. Lavery, the wife of a bushman, died suddenly in her house at Ohehunga, on 2nd November. The circumstances attending her demise are of a painful character. On previous evening it appears she was as well as usual, and although she has been gradually sinking for some time, there was no reason to suspect she was so near the close of her life. Several women of the neighbourhood were with her, and were drinking together in her house during the evening. On the following morning a woman named Mrs. Kiug went to the house of the deceased, and found the door partially open and the woman lying dead on the floor. A woman who had been with the deceased on previous evening, a Mrs. Sinlield, was asleep on the bed. She was awakened, and was much surprised to find that her companion was dead, as up to that time she knew nothing of what had occurred. A serious accident occurred on the 6th Nov., at Mercury Bay, to Allen Mclsaacs. While cross-cutting a log he got jammed against a bank, and was so severely injured interually that little hopes are entertained of his recovering. He will be sent to Auckland by the first steamer, with the view of obtaining the best medical advice. Everything has been done for him under the circumstances that could possibly bo contributed to the alleviation of his sufferings. A boat accident, fortunately unattended with gny serious results, occurred in the harbour on the Bth November. A boat, belonging to the barque Thames, manned by two hands, named Abraham Table (the seeoud mate), and an apprentice, named Aspinall, left the watermen's steps about 1 o'clock for the purpose of proceeding on board their vessel, and, when about threeparts of the way down, the boat was capsized by a sudden squall, the wind blowing very hard from the west at the time. They both managed to get on the top of the boat and

held on. Mr. fiawkes, waterman, who was. Bailing near the scene at the time, at onct made for them, bnt the men refused to allow themselves to be taken off. I n +h meantime the accident had been observed bv Keene and Fletcher, watermen, who i]J. put off to the rescue. The crew of th German man-of-war Gazelle had a hrvlf launched with great despatch, and nut off .amLtook the.boat.in tow and_took to the barque Thames, where the men Zn got dry clothing, and ..seemed little th* worse for their immersion. e Wm. Jones, formerly manager of «,„ Murphy's Hill Gold Mining Company and James Rycroft were recently charged -It rt Coromaudel Police Court, bytteZtl the.Tokatea Gold with having stolen from the Whakaroa bitten-a quantity of amalgam, weighing about ™ ozs., containing gold to the vtlue of £<?■$ A communication was made to the police by James Golding, of the Diggers' P fw Hotel to the effect that the been stolen by James Rycroft, and thrown down a shaft about 30 feet deep almnJ filled with water. This shaft happens to be on the Murphy's Hill claim, anaf singular enough, close .to the tip-head of the drive where Jones (now in custody) was working The amalgam was subsequently recovered Jones was acquitted, and Rycroft has been committed to stand his trial. Denis Wright, (formerly a captain in the British Army) was sentenced to an awregate of six months' imprisonment on = 3h .Nov., for passing valueless cheques, "has already been tried for the same offence, but the evidence was insufficient. It is stated that some years ago he obtained quite a sum of money from Dr. Carr by the same illej-al practice. He is said to be in receipt of a regular allowance from England, but drinking habits, and apparently a settled aversion to work have brought him to his present condition. A determined attempt at self-destruction was made on 28th October, from the wharf by a married woman named Heath, an immigrant per British Empire. The woman was on the wharf with a child, a boy about 15 months old, and a minute or two before the rash act was conversing with the cook of the British Empire. He had just left her when a splash was heard-in the water, and an alarm was given that a woman was in the water. A number of persons collected, the life-buoys werefetched, but the woman had by that time floater] under the pier, and was drifting away with the tide. Two boys put hastily off in a boat, and, guided by those on the pier, succeeded in bringing her to shore, when it was discovered that she had the child fastened to her by a cord. Both were conveyed to the Water Police Station insensible, and measures taken for their resuscitation. Drs. Hooper and Goldsbro' were promptly in attendance, and animation was soon restored, though for some time it was feared that the child was dead. The woman was removed to the boarding-house of Mrs. Vair, on the wharf ; and, subsequently, having greatly recovered, was removed in a cab to the Hospital. Mr. Moyle, of the Wharf Hotel, kindly sent down linen and dry clothes from his hotel for her use. The child was taken care of by Mr. and Mrs. Rogers, of Wakefield-street, who in a true spirit of charity volunteered to undertake the charge, but the child died on the following day. The poor woman, who resided at the Immigration Barracks, is, we understand, pregnant, and it is stated, it is not known with what truth, that domestic troubles drove her to commit the rash act. She was subsequently brought up at the Police Court, and committed to stand her trial at the next criminal sessions for the murder of her child. The prisoner, who is a good-looking young woman, seemed very feeble, and was accommodated with a seat in the dock. She wept bitterly throughout the proceedings, and declined, in a scarcely audible voice, to question any of the witnesses. When called upon for her defence, she simply said, " I am truly sorry I did it." [' An inquiry was held on 4th Nov., in the Provincial Hospital, to investigate the circumstances under which Richard Barrett, a seaman aged 64 years, came by his death. The evidence disclosed a very revolting picture of a certain class of life. The deceased occupied a detached kitchen belonging to Edward Whelch. A woman named Elizabeth Rogers had been drinking in a public house with a man named Moore, until 1 she was quite drunk. Whelch sent a cab for her, and met the cab on the way to the house with Moore and the girl in it. Moore persisted in going to the house, and Whelch complained of the annoyance to the police. Moore went into the kitchen occupied by the old man, and Whelch told Barrett to turn Moore out. There was a scuffle, and Barrett received a number of wounds oa the head, said to have been inflicted with a piece of iron hoop. Barrett lingered from 21st of October to the 3rd of .November. Moore was brought up by the police in custody. The detailed medical evidence was to the effect that Barrett was so diseased that death might have supervened at any moment. The jury were of opinion that the death of the unfortunate man was accelerated by the wounds inflicted upon his head, bnt that there was not sufficient evidence te shew by whom the wounds were inflicted. Subsequently Moore was brought up at the Police Court, and committed for trial on a charge of wilful murder. The evidence at present against him, differs in some pacts from that given at the inquest. Whelch's statement at the inquest was that he saw the prisoner and deceased "scuffling" together. He now says that by that he meant that deceased was down on his knees, and the prisoner striking him. The weapon was produced in Court, and is a thick piece of iron hoop, heavy, and in the hands of a powerful man capable of causing far more deadly wounds than those iuflictcd upon the deceased. The prisoner preserved an unconcerned demeanour, frequently smiling at any ludicrous circumstance or expression that might occur. The woman Elizabeth Rogers, who was the original casus belli, attracted some attention by parading the street outside the Court the whole morning, very gaily dressed, and apparently enjoying the notice she received.