SAD CASE OF DROWNING A Mother Drowned at the Freshwater Baths.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 130, 26 February 1887, Page 1

SAD CASE OF DROWNING A Mother Drowned at the Freshwater Baths.

Aucklvxd, Feb. 19. A vi<ry sad and fatal accident happened at the Freshwater City Baths this morning, when Mrs Tucker, the wife of the respected foreman at Messrs Hellaby and Co.'s, met with her death. It appear?, from inquiries made immediately after the occurrence, that the unfortunate woman waa a first rate swimmer, and was accustomed to remain for a long time under water, swimming about for the amusement of those of her friends present. This morning, at 11 30, some dozen females were in tho bath— some in the water, others dressing. The deceased had been in the water some half hour or so, swimming about in the deep portion, which was roped off from the shallower end by cords. Suddenly those near her saw she waa in trouble — she had been swung under water, and appeared unablo to rite She came to the surface, and tried to grab at the life-line which runs round the bath She missed it, and sank, no more to rise. No ono was at hand who could assist, and the women present cried wildly " Send for a man to save her !" It waa five minutes before a boy named Ernest Montgomery arrived. Meantime the other bathers ran up and down the side of the bath wringing their hands, and calling wildly for help. The boy named dived in, but on tho wrong side of the bath. Other help arrived, but the deceased had now been under water nearly ten minutes. A man named Casey, and then another, a Mr Celurr, arrived, and Mrs Tucker's body wad brought to the snrface. Theee two men say they then applied tho American process of restoring life to the apparently drowned, but without effect. Whether they properly understood the process seems questionable. At any rate the poor woman showed no signs of life when Dr. Tenneut arrived, about half-an-hour alter the occurrence The cape seems one of drowning from the deceased holding her breath too long under water, and thon being unable to rise. We cannot find that sho has been subject to fits, and she, from the description given us, dul not suffer from cramp at the time Mrs Jack, who saw her drowned, cays she was not quite ten minutes in the water Tho deceased was 41 years of age, and the mother of several children, one of which, a son, xs of a good age A rather curious thing connected with the sad occurrence has been communicated to up. A young lady who lodged with the deceased told her at breakfast this morning that ll her teeth were watering in a remarkable way." To this Mrs Tucker replied "Then you'll lose a dear friend boou," Little did the poor woman think who tho "dear friend" would be. We hear of several casos of narrow oeeupes f-rom drowning in the baths now that this sad affair has happened. A Miss Jamie n on, amongst others, had a narrow escape last week, and had not a lady who was present had pluck enough, and also the knowledge required to get her safely out of the water, a lutal accident would have then occurred. It is a disgraceful thing to allow a number of women to bathe in such a place where a fatal accident can happen at any moment without having preeent a man capable of giving assistance in cas« of emergency. No bath in England ia without ?uch an assistant. This guard must always be a proficient also in the art of restoring the apparently drowned.

Shopping in the Country.— " No, ma'am ; those are articles we don't keep ; but the oysters I think, you will find at the post office, and onions you can got across the barer a. 1 '