A TERRIBLE NIGHT.

Taranaki Daily News, 19 November 1920, Page 7

A TERRIBLE NIGHT.

WOMAN FALLS OFF A TRAIN NOT FOUND TILL NEXT DAY. After lying out all night at the entrance to the Parnell (Auckland) tunnol a woman named Margaret Allen, described as a cook, aged about 40 years, was found on the railway line on Sunday morning by the police. She was suffering from terrible injuries, including one leg almost severed near the ankle, the other leg broken, and wounds on the back and head. When the woman readied the hospital, the surgeons found it necessary to amputate her left leg. She must have suffered fearful agony as long as she retained consciousness.' To-day she i 3 in a semi-conscious condition.

When the Wellington express was coming into Auckland on Sunday morning at hnlf-past six, a woman's form was seen by the engine-driver to be lying between the two sets of rails just on the city side of the Parnell tunnel. As soon as he got in the police were notified, and Sergt. Parsons and two constables went, to investigate. The woman was conscious when they arrived, but, all she could tell them was that she had fallen oil' a train the night before. She had a railway ticket from Taupiri, and a bag belonging to her was picked up in one of the carriages of the train, which arrived in Auckland from Taupiri at a quarter past eight oil Saturday night. It is therefore almost certain that she must have been lying out about ten hours, and the night was cold ami stormy. When the Taupiri train reached the Auckland platform on Saturday night, the attention of one of the railway officials was attracted by a man getting off one of the carriages with a woman's hand bag under his arm. The man was challenged, and staled that he had picked the bag up from a seat in the carriage. The matter was referred to a constable, with the result that the passenge.', George Dunstan, aged afl was arrested on a charge of having stolen the bag and contents valued at 20s. Dunstan stated that he had joined the train at Papakura and noticing the bag lying on a seat, when the passengers were leaving the train at Auckland, he picked the bag up. Tiie bag has since been indentified as the property of Margaret, Allen. Dunstan came before the Police Court on Monday morning and was remanded j till next Monday.