THE LATE FATAL ACCIDENT.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2309, 23 January 1892, Page 3

THE LATE FATAL ACCIDENT.

THE INQUEST. On Friday last, at the Temuka Courthouse an inquest was held on the body of Henry James Bowles, who was drowned at MiiiiAu on Sunday last, before C. A. Wray, Coroner, and the following jury:— Messrs fl. T. Clinch, Chas. Williams, Thos. Barr, D. Taylor, A. H. Price, and G. H. Mogridge. Mr D. Taylor was chosen foreman. The jury having viewed the body* which was lying at the Temuka Hotel, the following evidence was taken : Alfred William Surridge, painter, Temuka, sworn, deposed : Accompanied the deceased with others to the Milford Lagoon, about six miles from Temuka, on Sunday last, the 17th inßt. Robert Blyth and George Mason were with us. We went down to spend the day. I drove the party down, and we arrived there about y o'clock. When we arrived we went to where Messrs A. W. Mann and F. Archer were camped on the banks of the lagoon. They had a tent, having lived there for a fortnight. After staying there for a ghort time we went to the mouth of the lagoon, a distance of 1J miles, in two boats. There were six of us in the party, in two 'toats. We then had a bathe, with the exception of deceased and Mr Archer. We had lunch at the mouth, and then deceased, Mann, and myself took a boat and returned to the camp. We got there safely about 12 o'clock. We laid down in the tent for a short time. The others returned while we were in the tent. AH decided to go up the lagoon again. Mason said he would go across in the Rob Roy canoe, and deceased said "If you go aeross, I'll go across." Mason went across and returned all right. The -yidth of the lagoon at that end is only about a chain. On his return Bo\vles got into tho canoe and went paddling up the lagoon. We all advised him not to go, as he told us he had never been in a canoe before, and we did not think him competent. Mr Mann strongly advised him not to go, and called him back. He replied, "I am all right." Hu seemed to be able to manage it. We kept him in sight for seven or eight hundred yards or more. We all got into the boat ready to follow. We hoisted sail in our boat, and directly we had started I looked ahead, and I saw the canoe had capsized, and deceased was in the water. The canoe was about 600 or 700 yards from us. The canoe was upside down, and deceased seemed a yard away from it. lie appeared to be swimming to the shore on the beach side. I said to Archer " He's right, he is making good headway to the j shore." Archer said "I don't know," and we then pulled for the shore, where •'I-fJsMnßiyth landed, so as to run along the-beach to his assistance. We thought we could get to him morß quickly. We got within a distance of 100 yards from him, keeping him in sight all the time, when he suddenly disapp-a-vred. He may have been wading. I think the water was from five or six feet deep up to near where he sank. There was then a sudden deepening of the water to about ten or twelve feet, where he disappeared. The bottom is sandy, with a lot of weeds. I sang out to him to go back before he sank, but never heard him speak. Had he stayed where he was he would have been safe. He did not seem to understand, and may not have heard me. He was about 200 yards off when I called to him. Blyth and 1 took off our boots and trousers and plunged in. We dived to the bottom several times—Blyth for about an hour. After about a quarter of an hour I left to give a report. I left Blyth and a man named Gregory, who had/come up in the meanwhile, diving. Have learnt since that deceased could not swim. I thought at the time that he was swimming, but the others thought he ..was T">A™fr djftafiu tTlp> hna± capsized fhe water was about four feet deep. It gradually deepened from there to the beach. Deceased was capsized above a spit, and had he remained where he was or gone towards the land on the southwest ha would have been safe. I assisted in dragging and searching the lagoon on Sunday afternoon, and Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and was present when the body was found, between three and four o'clock on Thursday. It was in about five feet of water, about two chains from where the .canoe upset. We had been dragging from about 3 o'clock, and found the body floating. The body wa» picked up by Geo. Husband, Clinch, and Stevens, who were in the boat. Identified !w b °J y -A ying at the Tom J.L «!. nenry J. Bowles, who was drowned on Sunday. The deceased was the licensee of the Temuka Hotel. He was married and had two children. He was perfectly sober when he got into the canoe. He was always a temperate man. Robert Blyth, another of the party who accompanied deceased to the lagoon, corroborated the evidence of tfre previous

witness in every particular—as' to the deceased getting into the canoe, the ( . warnings given to him, his reply, his HR being seen in the water, Surridge’s calling ” out to him to stay where he was, and the efforts made to save him. The witness continued ; Deceased seemed quite indignant at the suggestion of Mr Mann and Mr Archer that one of them should take the canoe to the mouth of the lagoon. Did not see deceased struggling. On getting to the point nearest to him I waited for a moment to see whether he would reappear — 1 •" niiU • m and dived. "The water was perfectly clear and we could see the bottom. Found a packet of cigarettes and a pencil floating on the water. Cannot account for not being able to find the body except by the supposition that it had got entangled in the weeds or got ' under a ledge. The depth of water varied from ten to fifteen feet. Was present on Sunday evening when the body was being dragged for, and saw deceased’s hat brought ashore in a net. Was there all Monday, and saw the place dragged over. Was there again on Tuesday evening. After deceased disappeared did not see him again, nor any

struggle. Deceased would be about sft 9iu or 6ft lOin high. Have been down to the lagoon pretty often. Had deceased gone in the opposite direction he would have been safe. He could easily have righted the boat. Identify the body found as that of Henry James Bowles. Edward Stephens, a Christchurch resident, now staying at Temuka, said : I came to Temuka on Tuesday. Have known deceased for five years. Hearing of the accident I came down. Deceased was 29 years of age last June. Deceased was born in Yeovil, in Somersetshire. Don’t know whether he could swim. Was present when the body was found on Thursday, and identify it as that of Henry Jumes Bowles. The jury returned a verdict of “ Accidental death by drowning. The body was conveyed to Christchurch the same evening by the express train. It was followed to the Temuka station by a large number of mourners. Great sympathy is felt for Mrs Bowles and the children in their bereavement.