A SERIOUS QUARREL.

Press, Volume LXI, Issue 18402, 8 June 1925, Page 8

A SERIOUS QUARREL.

—i CHRISTCHURCH MAN INJURED. (snciiL TO "ths rasas.") GBEYMOTTTH, June 7. A quarrel over a trivial matter and a struggle between two men for possession of a double-barrelled shotgun, loaded *in both barrels, wore the incidents preceding the admission to. the" Grey Biver Hospital of Frederick Easterbrook, who works at his calling with two mates cutting firewood for the Christchurch market. According v to the • report rccdved by. the* police it appears that a man named Henry Thomas Heron, of 24 Fairfield avenue, Christchurch, has a camp about a mile from Aickons railway station, on the Otira line. He has been engaged^in cutting firewood and since May 13th he has had in his employment Frederick Oddy Hobson, of River road, New Brighton, and Frederick Easterbrook, of 109 Grafton street, Linwoood. The latter brought with him a doublebarrel gun. The camp consists of a cookhouse and tent occupied by Hobson and Easterbrook- and another in which Heron sleeps. On Friday the three men worked as usual from 7 a.m.. until midday and had dinner at the cookhouse. After the meal a man named Peter Buttola came to the camp with several bottles of beer, which the men drank. During the conversation he examined tho gun and passed several remarks about it, saying that it was his. It was then unloaded. The four men then drove to the Bush Inn and had three or four beers each, after which Heron drove Buttola to Aickens station in his motorlOrry and returned to the camp with the others. They worked that afternoon and after 5 p.m. went back to the hotel, returning to the camp about 6, p.m. They had tea and in the course of tho meal (acordiug to the police, account, Easterbrook accidentally kicked the teapot over., into the fire. Heron remonstrated and Easterbrook said, "Do you/vant to pickji row with me?" Heron went into his tent, leaving Easterbrook and Hobson in the cookhouse. Hobson followed* Heron shortly after, and they sat on'the two bunks talking for about 20 minutes. Then Easterbrook went into the tent, holding the gun by the. barrel over his shoulder. He attempted to strike Heron with' stock of tho guri. It came in contact with a rope stretched across the roof of the tent and the force of the blow was broken. The stock struck Heron on the head, however, and inflicted an abrasion. The subsequent incidents have not been clearly explained, but the gun went off, and Easterbrook called out, "My legs are shot off," and he fell outside the doorway. Hobson and Heron then placed him.in the lorry and drove him to the Terminus Hotel at Otira, where ho received first' aid treatment from Constable Calwell and a man named William Teague. Upon examination it was found that he had a severe gunshot wound in the right thigh near the groin. The thighbone was fractured and the wound was covered with powder. Subsequently the injured man. was admitted to tho Grey Eiver Hospital. ■" .

Detective-Sergeant Young found the stock of the gun in the fireplace in Heron's hut and the barrel outside the door. The stock had been broken off, kii lcft bar J el contained an empty shell, while the other was charged, with a live cartridge. Near the door there were marks of the shot having gone through the jamb of the door after vl Ving o Passed thr <>ugh Easterbrook'a *eg. borne ammunition of the same found in Easterbrook's possession. k« ««• r,ok ' B con <iitioa is reported to Wood C' He loßt a ,ar « e quantity of 2 stated'tn D h arter y L wa « severed/lie is stated to have a chance of recovery.