Australian Items

Feilding Star, Volume XI, Issue 103, 22 February 1890, Page 3

Australian Items

•'■"... . '-»-' (Post's Correspondent) Melbourne, February 12. James Richards, mine manager of f the Great Southern Golduiiniug Company, Sandhurst, met with a terrible £ death on the Bth inst. The shaft, t •which is 400 feet deep, was found to be on fire. The mine manager and another man attempted to cover over the mouth of the shaft so as to ex» tinguish the flames: They stood oi * plank placed across the Bhaft, when one corner of the shaft suddenly gave way. A large quantity of timVer and earth, carrying with it Mr Ri*>har Js, fell down the shaft. The other man saved himself by a well-timed jump. The shaft contained about 100 feet of water. It was known that the manager must have been killed instantaneously. Three days after the body was recovered terribly mutilated. Richards leaves a wife and four children. The mother has lost her reason. A sad case of blood-poisoning has occurred at Rutherglen. A cow belonging to Mr E. Withers, Drought ( into the" saleyards, died, and was taken ( to the slaughteryard of Henderson Bros. James Henderson, Peter Han- _ nah, and Joseph Kirkup skinned the beast and gave the carcase to some • pigs. Several of the pigs died, and Henderson and Hannah showed signs of blood-poisoning. Hannah rapidly became worse, and died. Henderson f also grew very bad, and his removal to the Wangaratta Hospital was de- ! eided on, but on arrival atWangar- 1 atta he was found to be too bad to be removed to the Hospital, and a tele gram states that his life is despaired of. Bbipbane, February 12. News received here states that James Fay, of Normanton, a few days since went out about half-mile from ihe shore to fish in one of the boats of the steamer Dugong. The weather was fine until evening, when the wind arose. Fay attempted to pull ashore, but the breeze increased to a gale. After desperate* efforts, Fay was almost in touch with tbe land when a •fiercer squall caught the boat, and despite his greatest exertions oarried him out again. Nothing daunted, _Tay continued rowing and once more w hen in close proximity to the shore he was swept away. Thoroughly exhausted, the unfortunate fellow in despair gave up hia efforts. The wind and sea were tremendous, but the boat rode the billows bravely. For two day- h v^' at - vait^ e sport ol the waves and then it struck on an . island, capsizing- Fay managed to reach the shore though in an exhausted condition. He found that the island was over run with wild goats, one of which he caught, and with a rusty nail he bled its neck, drinking the Wood -that flowed from the wound. Sleeping after his draught, he awoke •refreshed. Undaunted, he proceeded to explore the island, which, though a fairly-large' one, is not named. A few. days after a fisherman's boat passed by and, seeing signals of distress on . the island, put in and took Fay on bard 'By this time he was reduced A*_ -cry statey but proper nourishment and attention reyived him. He Si been six* nights and fivd days vithout food or- water, *