HIMATANGI TRAGEDY

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 795, 16 October 1929, Page 11

HIMATANGI TRAGEDY

(Continued from Page 1.)

»rthur Robert Crowe, now employed A labourer on the Barber estate, t sold the farm on which the eedv occurred to Westlake in Feb,ra®. last, then described the buildr° ary jie'thought that the additions i ng ' v a( i been made by Westlake were wior job. He could not say whether in the new portion o£ 'll building were moveable or not, TLgh those in the old portion were, *Er fitted With sash-weights. > describing the district surroundihe house witness said that there :L no formed road to the property l he would consider it impossible , stranger to find the house at f “ r h iphe terms of the sale with had been satisfactory as far h w-s concerned. He did not know "Jawcme in the district likely to bear w«tlake :inv malice or any member , .ho Wright household, and ho had oI A beard of any trouble between wrirfit. Westlake or Thompson, tn the absence of one of the witRobert Moles, through illness, Russell read a statement D®": t ¥ him. Moles was the first milker employed by Westlake sW his farm and he had some import°«t evidence to give regarding the Mate and Westlake himself. house was death-trap ... was with Westlake for about „ „Tonths and I left him on ray 'JT account,” said witness in liis 'A„ment “Westlake was a very otherwise he was a genuine the house, witness said: ;: T he house of Westlake wasn t built, ■,Tas only chucked together. In my ninion the house was a death-trap. Westlake was a good-tempered man, nH Tor.lv saw liim once in a temper. "Westlake told me he was totally Mind in one eye, and the other v as When 1 was , in . pla< ; c urs Moles or I had to lead him to Wn fent When I left the house the windows in the rooms which West.av„ had built had no weights on them. ~1 ha had them all nailed so that L. windows would only go up six inches. Some of them had boards Thomas King, another old employee of Westlake’s, gave evidence regardin* the house and its occupants. "I left owing to the had condition of the house,” said witness. “It wasn't fit to live in.” The entrance to West'ake"s room had beeil made through a l»p in a curtain about ISin wide, and there’ had only been one doorway to the dwelling. The farm had not been much good and only 40 acres of it had been any good at all. There had been no firearms on the place when he had been there. Westlake had said that his sight was very bad. In reply to a question from the coroner witness said that the partition between the rooms was boarded on each side. THOMPSON A “EIT SOFT” Testimony was given by Norman Halltclay, of Rongotea, who had known the Wright family and Thompson well. Questioned about Thompson’s mentality witness said that he was a ‘'bit soft." He was a good worker and teemed pleasant tempered. As for Wright, one could not have wished tor a better neighbour. When Wright had left Rongotea witness had in his possession his double-barrelled shotgun. On Sunday, August 25 last, about a fortnight before the tragedy, he had given the gun to Thompson, who said that they had wanted it to shoot a few hares with. Ellen Miry Howe, married, of Palmerston North, said she knew all the parties well. She was confident of Mrs. Wright, who told her that her husband worried over financial matters. A year before they left Rongotea he could not sleep and used to get up at night to make tea. WRIGHT QUARREL One night Mr. and Mrs. Wright had a row and Thomson got up to separate them. Wright told his wife on two occasions that he would take'his life. On the occasion of a difference Wright pulled all the pictures down in the sitting room. Mr. Petersen objected to this evidence. but his objection was not sustained by the coroner.

Witness said that at times Wright would talk like a gentleman and at other times would be very peculiar ;md not normal. Mrs. Wright was a good, hard-working woman, and Thomson was a simple lad, devoted o the family. Westlake was very straightforward, upright and exact. »' illiam Gerald Davis, a farmer of Rongotea, said that Wright bought a ■arm from his father but did not make a success of the venture. The farm was returned to the trustees and »!** given a clean receipt for w--. 0n ovtr llle farm. '•right was worried financially for fears. He was a peculiar man and not normal at times. Witness would not -ave been surprised to hear Wright nad gone mad. Wright had a bill of **“ over the stock which if it had neon executed would have made him Penniless.

William Matheson, a farmer, of r~hg°fea, corroborated the previous evidence. He Baid Wright was a ®°°dy man. Mrs. Wright and Wright stayed with itness for two nights before leaving ■wngotea. Mrs. Wright told witness hat Wright had put her out on the oad one night at 2 a.m. and an hour afet.let her in, saving. “This is enough of this.” Mrs. Wright had that on one occasion years ago had the pins taken from the shot°“n as she was afraid of her husband. Witness would never suspect Oompson of violence.