FATALITY AT MOTUROA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 99, 22 September 1914, Page 8

FATALITY AT MOTUROA.

URKDGE COLLIDES WITH BOAT. A LIFO LOST. From some cause, which will probably transpire at tho inquest, tho llartior Board's dredge Pariiutu, while proceeding from the breakwater to the uiiinping ground at sea, ran into a lishing boat amidshiiw and one of the occupants lest bi« life is t.'ie re,sun. About t a.m. yesterday Flinders Hursthouse, a well-known resident ot iMoturoa, went out in an open lioat "it'll a young man named Lawrence K. Kitapatrick, lor the purpose, of foiling. About II a.m., while the boat was at Anchor one and a half miles out, Fitz(iatrick, while pulling up a fish, noticed' tile iiedge coming toward:? the boat. It wat then between 3{Jt) and +OO yard,* away. Fitzpatrick appear* | u 'have ■ warned Hurst'li-onie of the danger, t>ut liie latter said the dredge would steer clear of the. boat. TUey then proceeded to disentangle their lines, and on looking up again they found the dredgo was only 30 yards away and coming straight towards tflio boat. Botk of Ilieni stood isp and .shouted, Ihen llumtlioiim; picked up an oar, and before anything else could be done the :Ijow of the dredge crashed into the boat amidships, Ibolih the occupants being thrown into tilii water. On iitzpatrick coming t 1 the surface he fountl the dredge had for about one fourth of its length. pasted him. lie saw JLurstliou.se ding ng to the oar which he had .seized, and K"n-»in lo iiini. Jlmsthouse called to him to get the. rudder, which was floating near at, hand, and Fitzpatrick secured it,S/oth of tliemf holding 011 to it for i\. while, Ilursthouse suddenly let go his hold of tho rudder and grabbed , Fitzpatrick, who seized another piece ot wreckage and kept himself and Hurst, house above water until the }if# boat ■ ftifiu the dredge, manned ty four men 1 ,

arrived and took both the men into tile boat. Only live or six minutes had elapsed between the sinking oi t'he boat ami Uiu rescue by the dredge's crew, llui-sl'liouse was then in a slate of collapse, but appeared to be alive. When the men were put aboard the dredge, elloius were at owe started to revive liurslhouM, eind they were continued by tiie diredge hand* until after the body was landed at the wharf. Dr. Rex lirewsier speedily arrived, and at once took charge of the (body und did I all that w;u humanly ipossiblo to restore animation by means of artificial respiration, being ably assisted by Dr. Wade, who arrived a short while after I)r. Brewster, both doctors having teen snmmonded by telephone before the dredge reached the Wharf, and Dr. Brewster having made a record. trip to the wharf. Although there was no signs .of life when Dr. Brevrater arrived, , cli'wt-s to resuscitate were continued for at least an hour and a h:ilf when life was pronounced extinct. The police Were communicated witih and the body of the deceased taken to the morgue to await an inquest, which will be formally opened by the coroner at the courthouse at 10.14 this morning. It should I).; stated that immediately the shouting of the men in the 'boat was heard by the mute of the drudge, who wiiis in charge at the time, the engines were stopped arid the life boat lowered.

The late Flinders Hurst'liou-ie was ine youngest son of John Hursthoiye, who practised as a solicitor before coming to New Zealand, and was one of the first settlers on the Oarrington road. He ma-v also be remembered as the author of the well-known song "The Fanners' Club." The other tons of Mr. John Hursthouse were Messrs Wilson Hwrelhouec and Richnrcnd Hursthouse, both of whom, were well-known public men, the former having occupied the position of chief engineer of the Public Works Department, and the latter bavin® been a member of Parliament. The younger son, who has just met death, was born in New Plymouth, and there being IK? schools—not even an office to register bis birth —at the time, his early , education. wa«, undertaken by bis mother. Subsequently he joined a survey party, and was occupied, in that work in the back blocks for many years but when his Ilea It'll gave way be settled down at Moturoa, bought a (boat and earned a livelihood by fishing.

Deceased was connected with tin Humphries, Ricbmonds, Atkinsons and Mr. Percy Smith, also with Sir .John Franklin, and Mr. Matthew Flinders, the last named being well-known for his important survey and navigating work in Australia, and as the auttor of a book giving a descriptirc account of l.is work. He was great 1 ,;- esteemed bv those who knew him best, being regarded as a thorough "white" man. He was unmarried, and during tbe last 20 years or more, he suffered from chronic asthma, It is considered that his death practically resulted from shock and not; from tbe immersion it-self. A nephew of deceased's is in practico as a dentist in New Plymouth. IIi« mother died a few years ago at Motueka.