"WERE CLOSE FRIENDS"

Taranaki Daily News, 12 September 1940, Page 3

"WERE CLOSE FRIENDS"

'k»» DRIVER AND DEAD MAN NEW PLYMOUTH COLLISION !'It is a sad f ea ture of this accident that Aubrey and Jeffrey were close friends, said Mr. L. M. Moss at an inquest at New Plymouth yesterday. "Jeffrey s relatives have already written to Aubrey expressing their appreciation of the fact that he was not to blame." The inquiry concerned the death of Henry Jeffrey, aged 72 years, in the New Plymouth hospital on August 23. On August 9 about 6 p.m., said the verdict, while he was walking towards New Plymouth near the golf links he was knocked down by a car being driven from Waitara by Alfred Charles Aubrey. He received multiple injuries and was admitted to the New Plymouth hospital. Among the injuries was one that completely obstructed the circulation in the right lower leg. Jeffrey's condition improved for two or three days, but he was dazed and was unable to recall the circumstances of the accident, said Dr. H. C. Barrett, surgeon at the New Plymouth hospital. The right lower leg developed dry gangrene and on August 16 the leg was amputated at the thigh. Next day there were signs of gas gangrene gommencing, and despite vigorous treatment death occurred at 10.10 p.m. on August 23. Cause of Death. The coroner, Mr. W. H. Woodward. S.M., found in accordance with Dr. Barrett's evidence that the cause of death was gas gangrene following the amputation. Jeffrey's age and the presence of multiple injuries weqe contributing factors, and it was addea that the organism causing gas gangrene almost certainly originated within Jeffrey's own tissues. The accident was seen by Mrs. Mary Winifred Church, "Gilling," Henwood Road, Bell Block. She was driving towards Bell Block from New Plymouth and was climbing the Mangaone hill when she dipped her lights to another car. She did not raise the lights again because another car was approaching, she told the coroner yesterday. i When within 30 or 40 yards of the approaching car she saw a man walking towards New Plymouth on the south side of the road close to the edge of the bitumen. He was in front of the other car and she remarked to her sister that he would be hit. , Similar evidence was given by Miss Anne Fairfax Cholmeley, a passenger with Mrs. Church. Their lights were dipped some time before reaching the other car, she said, and they would not have interfered with Aubrey. He was given a ride to New Plymouth by Aubrey, whose name he did not then know, said Frederick Edwin Tonkin, first class aircraftman, at the Air Force station, Bell Block. The speed of the car he was in was about 35 miles an hour and it kept well to the-left hand side of the road, sometimes being off the bitumen. When descending a hill a man suddenly loomed in front, 12 or 14 feet away. He thought the pedestrian would be hit.

Careful Driver. He could not say anything about the lights of the approaching car, said Tonkin, but he considered Aubrey was a careful driver — he had met a number of cars and always slowed. He had had no chance to avoid an accident. The road was good and the pedestrian had plenty of room to walk on the clay at the side of the road. Answering Mr. Moss, who appeared for Aubrey, Tonkin said he had not seen Aubrey since the night of the accident and he had not met him before that. Aubrey was looking ahead at the time of the accident and witness was talking to him. Aubrey swerved to the right slightly as witness saw the pedestrian. Counsel for Jeffrey's relatives, Mr. J. H. Sheat, questioned Tonkin. He said he did not hear Aubrey say anvthing about the accident. When he was about 200 yards on the New Plymouth side of Egmont Road and was approaching the decline he was momentarily dazzled by the lights of two approaching cars, said Aubrey, who is a foreman at Borthwick's works and lives at Waitara. One car passed him with lights dipped and he was dazzled by the lights of the second car. He could not say whether the lights of that car were dirnmed. It was before he passed the second car that he struck the pedestrian. When first seen he was about six feet away and, said Aubrey. he was unable to avoid a collision. The left side of the radiator grill was damaged. There was a light drizzle at the time but his windscreeen wiper was working, Aubrey continued. His speed was 30 to 35 miles an hour. The cause of the accident was the dazzling of his vision by the headlights of the oncoming cars. Constable R. D. Hardie gave formal evidence. Sergeant J. Scarry conducted the proceedings for the police.