KILLED BY A MOTORCAR

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 185, 1 May 1919, Page 6

KILLED BY A MOTORCAR

DEATH OF MRS. REID

AN ACCIDENTAL OCCURRENCE

The inquest into tho death of Mrs, Margaret Eeid, 58 years of age, who was killed through being knocked down by ft motor-car driven 'by Mr. S. B. Williams, of Island Bay, in Upper Adelaide Eoad, on Monday evening, was held before Mr. P. V. Fxazer, S.M.,- yesterday. Sergeant M'Lenn appeared for the police, Mr. E. P. Hay for the relatives of the deceased, and Mr. T. Young for Mr. Williams.

Samuel Ernest Williams, driver of. Hβ car'which struck Mrs. Eeid; stated that he was a clerk, residing at Island Bay. Hβ was driving up Adelaide Eoad from the direction of the city at about 6.20 p.m. Near the corner of John Street he raw a gentleman, a lady, and a little girl crossing the road, and be sounded his horn. He swerved to avoid them and then crossed over to the left-hand side of Upiier Adelaide Eoad. It was dark at the time and bis headlights wore burning. He estimated his speed at about nine miles per hour. When about eevon or eight yards along . Upper Adelaide Eoad he felt a bump, and afterwards eaw e lady lyin" between the oar and the lefthand footpath,' He pulled up within a yard or two, and with the assistance of Mr. Beveridge he placed tho deceased in the car arid took her to the Hospital. The left-hand headlight was damaged aa tho result of the collision with deceased 1 , whom he did not see before the accident. He could assign no reason for not seeing her and could only assume that she stepped off the footpath antf struck the headlight. Had deceased come from the right-hand side of the, street and' walked in front of the headlights he must have seen her. At the spot where'the accident happened he was three-or four feet away from the pavement. Witness Jiad been driving for three years and had never had an accident before. Immediately prior to the accident he waa looking straight ahead. The oar was a "righthand drive," and Mr. Beveridge was sitting' alongside him on the left-hand side. Mr. Beveridgo gave no warning of anyone approaching. To Sergeant M'Lean: The street lights in the vicinity were fairly good, but there wag a sort of shadow in Upper Adelaide Eoad. However, that would not have accounted for his failure to see anyone crossing the road. In Teply to Mr, Hay, witness 6aid that, assuming deceased was crossing from John Street, her back would have been turned towards him. • James D. .Beveridge, factory manager, Island Bay, who was riding in Williams'e car at the tune of the accident, consid*. ered that the car wae travelling at less than ten miles per hour. The accident occurred fifteen to twenty feet wp Upper Adelaide Eoad. Witness did not 6ee deceased before the mishap, but after the impact he saw.her lying to the left of the car track. Had deceased come from the right-hand side of the etreet he doubted whether he would have seen her. James Eees, postal clerk, of 185, Hanson Street, eaid that he was Crossing the road a little above John Street; Hβ eaw JYilliani6'6 motor-oar, which was being driven at eight to ten miles per hour, but he did not observe deceased. The first he knew of the accident was the sound of a ibunip, and; thinking that something had fallen out of the car, waa very much surprised to see that it was a lady who had been knocked down. --She was. lying to the left of the car track, but there was nothing to indicate in what direction she was proceeding before tho 'accident. He was almost certain the deceased did not cross the road from tho right-hand side, ahead of him. Witness's attention was drawn to the car by the 6Oimding of the horn. . To Sergeant M'Lean: The lights in Upper Adelaide Eoad were very dark compared with those near the John Street corner. A telegraph pole at the corner threw a dark shadow over the spot where the accident occurred-. - _ , ~ Tho evidence of Dr. E. E. Waterworth, house eurgeon at the Hospital, was to the effect that deceased was unconscious when admitted to the institution, at 7.15 p.m. She was suffering from concussion, Thero was a bruise on the right Bide of the head. Deceased died at 10.45 p.m. tho cause of death being shock, due to compression of tho brain. James Eeid, of 98, Wallace Street, said that the deceaseo: was hie wife. She left home to catch a car at John Street for tho Manaw itu Station, where she intended to meet her daughter. Her original intention had been to travel to the city by a Wallace Street car.and interchange, but she afterwards decided to go to John Street and travel by a throngh car. Deceased was a strong, healthy woman, and had good eyesight and gooo, hearing. Eobert S. JM'Xair, brother of the dc ceased, stated that at 5.50 a.m. on the day after the accident he vieited -the scene of the fatality and eaw signs of something having been dragged about five or six paces from the crossing up Upper Adelaide Eoad. He visited the Hospital oa. Monday evening and observed that deceased's clothing waa torn on the !*jht sidu. ' . - The occurrence, said the Coroner, was certainly accidental. There was no evidence to show that Williams was driving his car carelessly or at an unreasonable speed. There was distinct evidence that he sounded hie horn when crossing the intersection. The lighting of the roatf may have had something to do with the fact that nobody, whether on the car or on the road, saw Mrs. Eeid prior to the accident. It might be that tho lighting was rather insufficient at that particular part of the road. . A verdict was returned in accordance with the medical evidence, .Mr. Frazer remarking that the occurrence was entirely- accidental, no blame 'being attachable to the driver of the motor-car.