CASUALTIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1851, 30 March 1904, Page 49

CASUALTIES.

A boy named Stanley Bennett, aged about 14, was seriously injured by the goods lift in 11. B. Morton and Co.'s, Auckland, on the 23rd) inst. H<* was going upstairs, and when on the first floor seems to have put his head into the lift wsll for some reason or other, and just at that moment the lift came down and crushed his head between the bottom of the lift and the bar which protects the opening into the lift well. He •was removed to the hospital, and underwent an operation. There are only slight hopes of his recovery. The boy died in the> hoepital on Thursday. At the inquest evidence was given, that Burnett was badly jolted in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, but the medical evidence was to the effect that the accident was in itself fatal. The jury returned a verdict of acci- | dental death, and added a rider strongly condemning the ambulance waggon as un- | suitable. | Mr Lindop, the manager of the State coal ! mine, Greymouth, died on Thursday. He j left tho Harbour Board office and drove to Dr Morice's residence, just getting inside the door and telling the doctor ho felt ill. when he dropped down dead. Heart disease is supposed to be the catise. While playing in the Shag Point schoolgrounds on Wednesday last a lad named Burrell, son of Mr Charles Burrell, of the Pubsiviti Hoteh fe-11 and fractured his arm. Mr Mat hews, head master of the school, rendered first aid, and the lad was subse- [ quently attended to by Dr Hislop. What appears to- have been a very deteri mined case of suicide was r-eported to j Sergeant Conn, of South Dunedin, on Friday afternoon. About 4-.15 Mr Thomas Isaac, a cleric in the employ of the Drainage I Board, noticed an elderly man on the beach opposite Tahuna Park, and saw him walk deliberately into the breakers. Mr Isaao rushed to the spot and attempted to secure tb.9 man, . but "found he could r.ot reach i him, as the current, which appeared to ba running strongly, carried the man out to sea, " and ha was last seen outside the breakers, only his heels being visible. It is surmised from, the last-mentioned fact ; that the man may have had come weight ; tied to his neck, as from th© time that he ',\vas swept off his fe-et by the breakers, into which he had walked, until lie disappeared his head was never visible. As nothing '• further could be don© Mr Isaac reported th© ' matter io Sorgcant Conn. The police have been furnished with evidence i which tends to show that the man was James Couston, master plumber, who carried on business for many years in Princes etreet south. The deccription given by Mr Isaao agrees with that of Mr Couston when he left his home on Friday afternoon.^ since which time he has not been seen. It is said that recently Mr Oouston has been needlessly worrying about business affairs. The body was recovered on Monday, being washed ashore by the tido. It was fully clothed excepting a ■ hat, and was taken ■to Mr Couston's residence. It was | surmised that a weight would be found tied to the neok of the man who was seen to drown himself on Friday, but no evidence of this was seen on Mr Couston's body. Johni Khani, jun., shot himself accidentally on Saturdaj- afternoon at Kafcikati, Auckland, when getting into his boat. William Smith was admitted to the Hospital on Saturday -ci eniug-, suffering from a fractured collarbone, sustained while playing in a Southern Foctball Club practice match during the afternoon. A young man, the i=on of James Smith, a farmer at Fernside, Canterbury, was found with a large wound in the stomach, lying ' near the plough and horses h& had been ! using. Some of the horses were loose, and a doc-tor who examined the body gave it as his opinion thai death was due- to a kick. Deceased leaves a wife and two young children. The police have been informed that at 1 o'clock on Monday afternoon Frank Wilson, who was engaged in sinking a shaft at the Taratu coal mine, near Milton, was killed, by a fall of piping, which hit him a heavy blow and cut his head open. The deceased, who went to the mine on Wednesday last. was a German, about 30 years of sge, and is supposed to have friends residing at Normanby, North-East Valley. William Cooper, pmployed at the Milton Brewery, cut hits l&fb wrist very badly on Monday afternoon. He was bottling at the- time. Drs Sutherland and Mcnzies had their patient under chloroform for a couple of hours in order to dro=,s tho wound. A man named James Collins was admitted to the- Hospital on Monday suffering from an injury to the right eye, sustained while working at Sparrow's Foundiy.

in the Great Easter. Red Ronald accounted for Brighton over five furlongs in lmin 10 2-ssec, and there seems little doubt that the Red Ensign gelding would have been ;a fairly good performer had he been blessed with a set of sound legs. Phaeton- ' itis galloped 12 furlongs at. a good solid pace with a 'light boy up, and Southerly Buster did the same over eight fuivongs. "Vladimir moved freely over a circuit at halfpaee, and his race at Invexcargill has evidently stirred him up a, bit, as he seemed! 'inclined *o gallop with more resolution bhan he 'has displayed of late on the track. Victor :il .did stesdy work, and «• couple of others did unimportant tasks.