FATAL ACCIDENT.

Evening Star, Issue 4079, 23 March 1876, Page 3

FATAL ACCIDENT.

On Sunday morning it was reported in Lawrence that a woman known as Mrs Clinkscale, who has lived in or about the neighborhood of Wetherstones for some years, had been found dead that morning witb her neck broken, having fallen into an abandoned claim near her home. On ■making inquiry we found .the report to be substantially correct, and have ascertained the following particulars :—Mrs Clinkscale, who was a woman of upwards of fifty years of age, was the widow of a miner who was killed by a fall of earth at Wetherstones some six or seven years ago. She got married again a few weeks since to a man named James Butter, more familiarly known as “Jamie the Barber.” On Saturday night, about eight o’clock, she had been in Wetherstones township, and returned home about eight o’clock slightly the worse for drink. On looking for a pet lamb that she took great interest in, she could not find it, and told her husband she was going up the gully to look for it, as she was afraid some dogs would get hold o| i and worry it. It was almost dark by tbi time, and her husband said be would go with her. He took the lamp with him and followed the track up the sideling, but bitf wife would insist bn going up the middle of the gully, and went alone. He cooyed to' her, and got a response, when he told her he had lit the lamp, and asked her to come up to the track, as it was dangerous in the gully, the place being completely riddled with holes and old workings. To his request, however, she did not comply, but • told him to keep on looking for the lamb. He went up the hill a little further, and then returned to the house. After • waiting for some time, and feeling rather uncomfortable that she did not return, be went to a neighbor (Robert Hunter) and got him to accompany him up the gully in search of her.. They went and looked as best, they could, but found no trace of her, and concluded she had gone up the hill to the house of some party whom she supplied with milk. By this time it was about 11 o’clock; so they gave up the search to resume it again at daylight. As soon as the faintest glimmer of light was observed in the morning the search was commenced, when Mrs Rutter was found _ dead in one of the old claims. She had evidently slipped over the face of a precipitous claim and fallen on her head and been instantaneously killed. The heel marks of her boots are said to be distinctly seen for a few inches on the clay where she began to slip down.— ‘ Tuapeka Times.’ ‘