"THE MYSTERY OF A HANSOM CAB."

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVI, Issue 11658, 13 June 1912, Page 4

"THE MYSTERY OF A HANSOM CAB."

'" A CABMAN'S ADVENTURE. ' An expressman driving up Humher street to ,. the railway station a few minutes before the first express from Dunedin was due this morning was stopped by a pedestrian, who said: "There is a cab over here on the beach, ■you might come over and see if you know whose it is:" The. expressman found adiansom cal) and horse belonging to a nia.ii named Peter.Hughes lying at the bottom of the bank, about 20 feet high, over the Coquet street railway crossing. The horse and cab lay at the the bank on the. shingly Jieaeh. The expressman and cab-drivers lined up ax the. railway station immediately went to the scene of the accident ;and'helped to-got the erfb off the horse. The vehicle was nearest the sea, and the horse was partly lying against the hank; When, the cab was pulled back the animal was able to get', up. .The legs wen 1 considerably skinned, but it .was able to walk .'away aftoi-a while, though very shaky. The cab was very much smashed about, and it .appeared almost beyond repair'. The driver, Hughes,'-'was' not/about anywhere, and. lip. one seemed to be. .able,, .-to -account for'tiio accident. A. hat, identified as one worn by. Hughes, lay. on the. top.of the bank. There, were no .marks leading up to -the. bank,' and .;the place! where the horse had been lying bore rio fresh 'marks "of a struggle. The track left by the horse and call going over, seemed to have beeii made some hours before, and the horse's..,shoes were rusted as if they had been exposed to the rain for some hours. ; . The last that was seem of ;Hughes, bv tile other-cabmen, was about- 5.45 <>.' clock last night, after, the second cxt press- for- Duuedin .had left.;.,. Another man lit one of the lamps on the cab for: him, and he drove off north. -Ho was seen by others late in the evening without any: hat. It is supixised that the horse, bolted-from some, part of the town and went-. over ..the bank, lying there all night. ..Other cab-drivers say that'-Hughes, was not on the stand after the- second express for' rjunodin went out yesterday... ...