Melancholy Accident.

Evening Post, Issue 56, 13 April 1865, Page 2

Melancholy Accident.

An accident of a most distressing charaoter, and which, w« regret to state, terminated fatally, occurred in Cook-atreet, Auckland, on Saturday evening last. The following are the particulars as near as we can gather them — About four o'clock in the afternoon, a lad, aged nine years, son of Mr. John Patterson, residing in Cook-street, west, went to his parent's bedroom, and took a gun from behind the door, and (he having previously some caps) commenced to snap them upon the nipple of the gun. He was not aware that the gun was loaded, and three caps were snapped in succession without the gun going off. His sister Mary, aged twelve years, who was in the act ot cleaning up the house for Sunday, healing the caps snapping, proceeded along a passage in the house to check h. r brother and take the gun from him. Just then he snapped the fourth cap, when the gun went off, and the whole of the charge—shot — entered the left side of the neck of the little girl, causing a frightful wound, severing all the arteries, jugular vein, and leaders of the neck ; the poor thing staggered about two paces and fell, when death must have been instantaneous, for the gun was so near her that the.neck was blackened with powder. Dr. Hoopur was immediately sent for, but long ere his arrival life was extinct. The brother and sister were passionately fond of eaoh other, and upon the former perceiving the mischief he had done, went off into convulsions, and his ravings were so bad that he had to be removed from the house. Doing Better. —A farmer in Pennsylvania, whose sheep had been stolen for many year?, offered a notorious sheepstealer i>2o a yetir to let his flocks alone. That worthy, how g ever, only smiled, and said, " No, thank you, I think I can do better " " Oh, dear, Mr. 8., you jest when you say my baby is the handsomest you ever saw ; , you must be soft soaping. " Well, Madam,^ returned the blunt old gentleman, '• I thiik it needs soap of some kind."