ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 614, 17 September 1909, Page 6

ACCIDENTS AND FATALITIES.

' NOT WATCHING THE .CABS. ;■. ■ • / ; ' A FATAL OCCURRENCE. 1 (By TtleeraDb—Special CorrMtwmSrmU Auckland, September 16. ,'The somewhat extraordinary fact that a mai, can walk in front of ah approaching tramcar ' without attracting the notice of the motormaa,, came out- at the adjourned inquiry, into : tha death of Andrew M'teod to-day. Deceased was knocked-down, by a tramcar on Saturday | afternoon in .Queen Street, • dying - at- tho toa* . • | •pitai' subsequently. '< '• ' A witness named Wm; ■ Griffiths. stated J that ho was travelling down Queen Street 111* a txam« car at 2.30 on Saturday afternoon, Tho ca* stopped at the Shortland ■ Street corner, and , 1 witness saw dccc&s&d standing about 2 footer , the up line, alid nodaed to him. A Bncco«aox of cars were passing np Queen Street, but do« ceased'seemed to he" watching'the down c&tSj and not the up cars. /He appeared, to hesitat/ . ■ • before crossing tho line, and evidently did m notice an up car coming along.,, thea , saw deceased -thrown. to the ground, but die 1 not see'the car strike him.'.'ln witness* opin- , ; iom deceased attempted to cross tho' lino, in i front'of the car. ' ... •j ' ' \ Another, witness,, in. reply to . one of d* » ceased's relatives, said that tho, motorman had ' • plenty of time to pull up.;.. When witness saw j deceased stop on to the lino tho car was .quit®' 12 yards away. ■' Chas. Henry Cooper, motorman on the car 1 which 6truck deceased, said that he was travel- ; ling at the time at about-8 miles an hour. The ■ ! first that he know of tho accident was when - , someone called out: "There's a man ldlled." j Witness put on tho emergenoy brake, but it j 6esmed to catch the .first time, arid ho-ap- , plied it a second time and-stopped the car. j ■ Tho."Coroner:-You did not sea deceased .'at j ( '• ' ■' Witness:'No, I saw nothing to'call my \ at* • tention to anyone on'either sido- of .the -lina i X did not sco tho accidcnt at all.' I was look . ! ing straight ahead. When driving I alwayi allow about eighteen inches on both sides ot j the line. v • ■■■ . , '■ I Lewis Gick gave evidence that when no san deceased ho was hesitating within two feet oi tho line. Then, when tho car was almost up to. j him. deceased stepped into it. Ho did not, ( ! think that the hiotorman could have doiio any-' ' thing to avoid the accident. Deceased was / 'J looking tho wrong way at the time of tho ac- . I cident. , ' ' I Tho jury returned a verdict that death was , ■ j accidental; that deceased'walked into tho car, j and so received injuries resulting in liis death; 1 and, further, that no blaine was attaohablo to j anyone. , : ". ' ' j ' A TOMAHAWK AND A MISHAP. ' , ] ' At Fcathcrstoii yesterday a sin'fclo man named ' I Patrick O'Callaghan was engaged in chopping "j when the tomahawk, which ho was hold- - j ing in his left hand, slipped and inflicted'a 3 nasty gash on his right wrist.'Tie was brought / j down to Wellington by the afternoon tram, j and taken to tho hospital. Tho injured man is a labourer and 27 years of ago. " : | INJURED ON;'S.S. VICTORIA. .! • While working on the Queen's Wharf at 3.15 ] p.m.' yesterday,' helping to lower balcsofwool [ sacks into tho 6.5. Victoria, a married man named | John Powsctt had tho misfortune to moot with an accident. He Was sitting beside tho hold directing tho lowering of the balss, when onoot a load of three bulging from tho sling brought :\. tho lot dotal,' one descending, on ..Dow-, , sett. Dr. Poillon was summoned at oiico, and found that, flip man had sustained compound fracture cif the right thigh. The injured man, who resides at 14 Karori Place, was removed to ■ i > the hospital. ; .. • ' ; ,