COACH ACCIDENTS.

Evening Star, Issue 4002, 22 December 1875, Page 3

COACH ACCIDENTS.

Last week was remarkable for coach accidents. On Friday morning B'wanstou and Warhurlon’s coach broke down about three miles from Oamaru, one of the wheels coming off ; hut beyond afgood shaking am) a few hours’ delay the passengers sustained no injury. On Sator ay Duncan’s coach to Dunedin met with a mishap —the axle broke near Waikouaiti. In this cast also there, fortunately, waskio person injured. But on Saturday, at about 5 p.m., a most serious accident happened to Smiths coach atAFKenzio’s Flat, about five miles from Wailcouaiti. One of the lending hon-es shied at a load of newly cut p.sts and rails, which was deposited on the road side. The coach was capsize,! about Gft over an embankment; two of the passengers on the box seat were thrown into n ditch. Air Cotteril, another outside passenger, who was coming on a visit to tho Shag Valloy Station, was scveiely bruised, and a jockey named Lynch, who was coming to the l ttlmerston Races, was likewise severely bruised. T he passengers msido the coach, with the exception of daughter of Mr Coventry, tiutmith, Dunedin, escaped unhurt. Aliss Coventry sustained a severe cut on the head. AVlmn the coach capsized the king-bolt got loose, and the horses bolted with the f u e wheels, but their progress was ultimately arrested by coming into contact with one of the tt'egvaph posts. Lynch is in a very critical state, tough it is not supposed that his injuries arc of a fatal character,—‘ Palmerston Times,’ In its nccount of the accident to Duncan’s coach, the ‘North Otago Times’ say's: —Air Donald Borne, Papakaio, whowas on the box at tho time, fortunately managed, just as the coach was overturning, to spring into the road, landing unhurt on his feet. Mr Cotterill (son of i anon Cotterill, Christchurch, rvho was proceeding to Bir Francis Bell’s station tor the holidays) and another outside passenger (name unknown) were not so fortunate. The former, in leaping from the coach towards the road, fell upon thepvheel, and was seriously bruis -d and shaken, while the la-ter fell partially under the coach, his legs an d ankles being.-e vei c’y .Fortunately no bones were broken All the inside passengers—about a dozen ladies and children, among whom rvoio tv o or three infants—almost miraculously escaped with a shaking, except one little girl about twelve years old on her way homo to Palmerston from school, who received an ugly cut on the head, the wound, for a time, bleeding profusely'. How it happened that no one was killed and no bones were broken is a mystery, for the inside passengers, on the coach being overturned, were completely mixed up, one of the infants being undermost. It is a very good thing that the consequences were po worse, but the lesion of the accident is plainly that coach proprietors should nob be allow' j d to put shying horses in their team’, to the risk the lives and limbs of their p;issengers. A little stringent legislation in this (lireccum and its wholesome enforcement would nob be amiss.