A DANGEROUS PRACTICE

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 24, 16 November 1943, Page 5

A DANGEROUS PRACTICE

TE TEKO BOY'S DEATH

.lOY-IUDI-: ON LOC, TUAI.N

The danger of taking unauthorised' joy-rides, by jumping aboard the slow-moving logtrains, a habit which has apparently been fairly widespread amongst school children at Te Teko, was emphasised at the inquest into the death: of Wiremu Humua (William Schooner) a twelve-year-old Maori boy, which took place in the Whakatane Courthouse, before Mr G. A. Brabant, Coroner last Saturday. Mr G. A. Suckling watched proceedings in the interests of Messrs Syme and Co. and Mr G. Otley on behalf of the insurance interests. The evidence showed that with two other boys, Billy Ngaheu and Johnny Tuataku, the deceased boarded the train as it passed the Te Teko township on October 22 .last. One of the boys Billy Ngahery said that tliey climbed on to the second to last truck. The deceased who was a little behind tried to cross on the couplings from one truck to the other. He 1 (witness) had held out his hand to help him in the process. Suddenly Ilunua's foot slipped and he. fell between, the trucks, making witness lose his grip f He saw the wheels of the truck pass over his body. With his other companion, he had then jumped oil" the train which continued on its way, and went back to' deceased, who was still breathing. He added that lie thought the driver of the train knew that they were riding on the trucks, though they had never been given permission to do so. He. had never been warned against the practice.

Driver's Evidence The driver of the locomotive, Thompson Gardener, stated that he drove the engine with a rake of five trucks to Matahina on the day in question and was travelling only at about five miles per hour, slowing down to two miles per hour when passing Tc Te'ko. He had .seen three boys run along the trade and. board the train., and intended stopping the engine, and .sending his fireman back to put thc.m off. Shortly after however they had jumped off again and lie had not bothered. He had no notion that any accident had happened until informed by the mill manager, Mr G. Symc. at Edgecumbe. Witness added that he had. had considerable trouble with Maori children who made unauthorised trips on the train and had frequently reported the matter to the Mill owners, and to the Te Teko school teachers. School Children Warned Constable Thomasscn said that at about. -1.30 p.m. lie: had visited the scene of the accident. The injuries sustained by the deceased were consistent with the reports of the acci« dent and there were no suspicious circumstances. He had made extensive enquiries about the accident. The Coroner: The boy had no 'right on the train? Witness: No Sir. 1' have seen Mr Butler, the headmaster and when the school children were asked if they had been warned not to ride on the timber trains, everybody's hand went up. The finding was that —On Friday. October 22nd when Geo. Symc and Company's log train was passing through Tc Teko*. deceased and others without permission boarded it, and when trjing to pass from one truck to the other deceased was run ver and killed.

The 1i no concerned, is one over which there has been a good deal of misconception in the past. It is the property of acompany, known as the. Matahina Tramways Limited, and is designed, to carry logs and timber for the Whakatane Paper Mills, Geo. Syme and Co., and ultimately R. V/. Smith, all ut' whom are shareholders. It was inaugurated in 1925 as a joint method of timber transport for the interested concerns.