DRAGGED TO DEATH

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 1, Issue 13, 19 May 1939, Page 5

DRAGGED TO DEATH

* BOLTING HORSE INQUEST ON AWAKERI FARMER 'OVER STUMPS AND WIRE *" i. The manner in which John David aged about 60, farmer of Awakeri. received the fatal injuries from which he died in hospital on Wednesday morning, was recounted when the inquest was opened at the. Whakatane Courthouse on Thursday afternoon, before the district coroner, Mr G. A. Brabant. After the •evidence of eye-witnesses Mr Brabnnt, adjourned the inquest sine die, jfbo enable medical evidence to be laken. It is possible that the hearing will be concluded to.day. IDENTIFICATION The first witness was Constable T. J. Cummings who gave evidence of identification. He had known deceased for about 20 years. He was a bach and his only relative, as far as Constable Cummings knew, wa s his rsister. Mrs M. Jones, of Feilding. v Archibald Finlay Smith, shareof Awakeri said that about •1.45 p.m. on Tuesday he visited <Gobbie ? is house. Gobbie was then preparing his midday meal. The wit. ness left Gobbie and at 2 p.m. look■eu out from his own verandah and saw a horse galloping across one of f Gobbie's paddocks towards the dividing fence. Witness could see that

the horse had a rope round its neck :and that it was dragging something, and as the horse Sot nearer he could see it was dragging a man. HORSE STOPPED He, called his housekeeper and they •ran across towards the horse. The man seemed to get caught in som£■thing and the horse stopped, but before they could get to it the horse off again,, still dragging the man. The.boJy bounced into the air as though it had hit some obstacle and the rope came off the right ankle to which it was attached. The Tiorse galloped away still dragging ■the rope. Mr Gobbie was unconscious but '

Toreathing when they reached him. X His housekeeper rang up the police and a doctor. To his knowledge Mr Gobbie was dragged about half a mile over a -number of wattle stumps and barbed wire. Mr Gobbie's hat and glasses -were found later near the back door ■of his house by the woodheap. j\lr <sobbie had three horses which often fed near his house, and which were > "there when witness saw Gobbie cook ing his mral. One horse was a halfdraught which had never been brok. -en in. It was generally a quiet horse The rope had been on its neck for about two months. THEORY OF ACCIDENT Witness said Gobbie's lunch was still on the stove when he visited the > house after the tra-gedy. He (lid not Itnow how the accident happened l>ut he agreed that it was possiblA that Mr Gobbie went to the wood. heap near the horses, and that th«: horse came up to Mr Gobbie who may have patted it, and thnt the rope became caught in a half-hitch round the right ankle. r Cora Emily Ada Foubister housckeeper for the previous witness, coi>_ firmed his evidence. Mr Smith had called out to her and pointed to something in the paddock which look cd like a man lying in a crumpled Tieap. The horse galloped off as they ran mt, and dragged Mr Gobbie for ■quitWa considerable distance before "he bounced up as though he had liit h something and became freed from "the rope. This concluded the evidence and the inquest was then adjourned. SAILORS Identification of about 10 of the New Zealand ratings who returned -In the Achillas was made difficult for their relatives by the fact that on the voyage they had grown beards jSome were brown, others black anl a few golden, but all had been grown strictly to regulation, which does not permit only moustaches, but tn. sist s upon full beards or nothing. Permission ha s also to be obtained before the beard i s grown.