TRAGEDY AT BUCK'S CAMP.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1601, 19 November 1912, Page 8

TRAGEDY AT BUCK'S CAMP.

A D.RU.NKEN ORGY. - MAN FOUND DEAD. (By Telegraph.—Press Assocda/tton.) Auckland, November 18. Buck's camp, situated midway between (Henderson and Swansoh, has during! the past week-end been the scene of a drunken orgy, culminating in the death of a man named Harry Whitsides. ■ A."Star" representative this morning visited the camp. The central habitation of .the camp is a galvauised-iron house, .'occupied by a Spaniard. It is surrounded .by numerous wnares and shanties, occupied by. people who are ostensibly gumdiggers.- This morning it was apparent that a number of residents' had been in-' dulging- in .a serious drinking bout during the .past fowdays. In the first whare visited were several men and women, all bearing evidence of hard drinking. The women were "dishevelled in appearance, and amongst the men more than ono showed bruises and 'scars, indicative of hard knocks.' . ' ' '•' ■■■' The pressman, possibly being taken for ■a policeman, was immediately informed .that there had been, "murder." Ho was ■taken to a miserable little whare, where a man lay dead on the floor. Tho body was twisted in an extraordinary position between the bed and the fireplace, lying face downward. A woman volunteered tho statement that there had been considerable carousing, and yesterday a' twogallon keg of ,wine was brought to camp. During Sunday there had been some fighting, and at night a. disturbance ocourred in her whare, three men and a woman, in addition to herself, being present. In the-scuffle which took place the light was overturned and-extinguished. She proceeded to push everybody outside, and .when she thought that they had all'gone she closed, and locked the door. The speaker admitted that they were all drunk, and that she remembered nothing more until she .awoke this morning and heard 6omoone,-'knocking, at the door.- .Getting up she stumbled over something which she thought was a dog, and proceeded to kick it-out of the way. It, did not move, and stooping down she left the body of Whiteside, which was' numb and cold. She ran outside: screaming, and the others in the camp answered her calls. •'■ ."There has been murder,- and that .Woman,there," she'said, -pointing to her companion, "knows who dealt tho blow." The woman indicated was.in an even worse state physically than the person, ■ making the statement. The second woman admitted that she had been having such a spree that she had no clear recollection of what happened, beyond the fact 'that she and Whiteside had been dancing together, and that afterwards there bad been a squabble. • : The occupants; of the camp knew sufficient to refrain from interfering with the body pending the arrival of the police. When about midday Detective Hammond and Constable Iked had driven. across from Avondale they found ; the body_ in the same twisted and distorted position, face downwards and covered with a sheet. On an examination being made,, it was found that the man's face was in a pool of-blood, and that the . features were blackened and distorted -beyond recognition. •It is possible that the injuries to Whiteside's, face were received ashe fell, for- a heavy iron from the fireplace was lying close beside his head. Until a postmortem examination- is made it will be impossible to say whether Whiteado really received the injuries in a brawl or Whether in falling he struck his face.on the fireplace.