CARE WITH FIREARMS

Waikato Times, Volume 126, Issue 21034, 9 February 1940, Page 7

CARE WITH FIREARMS

HIGH ACCIDENT RATE i STATISTICS ANALYSED j j HAMMER GUNS DANGEROUS? (Special to Times) AUCKLAND, Thursday | Far too many accidents had 1 occurred in the last few years in the Dominion with guns, said the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. W. E. Parry, today, in urging greater j care in the handling of firearms. He i said a fair percentage of the accidents had been fatal, j The Minister said that at the recent i Centennial rifle championships he ! had spoken of the bad part played by the hammer shotgun in the accidents recorded, and some of the champions of that particular shotgun had questioned the likelihood of an accident with it. They had done so, he feared, without a full knowledge of the statistics. Accidents Analysed The police gathered particulars of all shooting accidents reported and a return showed that of 107 accidents that had occurred in 107 weeks be- ! tween 1937 and 1939, 44 had been ! fatal, Mr Parry said. The police | classified the accidents as follows:

From March 1, 1935, to December 31, 1939, the number of accidents with guns was 250, of which 99 were fatal, he added. The classification of the firearms with which these | accidents occurred was as follows:

Totals 250 99 151 The average rate was one in every seven days. Care and Responsibility The Minister said it would be seen that the hammer shotgun rate had fallen during the later period, as compared with the earlier. That, he thought, might have been due to the publicity given to the dangerous features of the gun. The .22 calibre rifle had more than maintained its accident rate, being recorded as figuring in 56 of the 67 cases in the shorter period and in 121 of the 144 cases in the two periods combined. “The figures cannot fail to show the community the need for great care being exercised in the use of firearms, especially the hammer shotgun,” Mr Parry continued. “There can be no objection taken to a gun being in the hands of a careful and responsible person who understands its use and dangers. “It is unfortunate, however, that a gun does not always get into the possession of a person who realises fully the danger of the weapon to himself and, sometimes, to other persons. Action is pressed for the further restriction, or proper regulation, of firearms, and I am not certain the way that action will go, but the statistics certainly warrant much consideration.”

Fatal fatal 1 Hammer sliotg-uns .... 28 12 10 llammerless type .... s 4 4 Rifles 67 25 4 2 .Machine-gams t l o Pistols anti revolvers 3 2 l Totals 107 4 4 63

>'onFatal latal Hammer shotguns .... 82 as 44 ilammerless type 15 0 u Hi lies 144 50 94 Machine-guns 1 l u Pistols and revolvers .. 8 4 4