RATANA DISASTER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 May 1938, Page 10

RATANA DISASTER

EVIDENCE AT INQUIRY. OBSERVATIONS BY RAILWAYS APPRENTICE. (By Telegraph—Press Association). WELLINGTON, May 3. At the Ratana inquiry today, Frederick Harry Taylor, an apprentice at the Railway Workshops at Hutt, and a passenger by the train, said he knew a witness yesterday had said in effect that he (Taylor) said a railway cadet had travelled on the engine from Wellington. Witness said that he was with other apprentices on the station at Wellington, and before the train's departure saw a young man on the engine footplate talking to the driver. Witness went to his carriage. He did not know the youth was a cadet. He presumed he would have an opportunity of leaving the engine before the train started. Witness dozed on and oft' to Palmerston North and was asleep when the train arrived there. He walked to the engine. Witness’s seat was in the first carriage and he stood about 25 yeards away. There were three persons in the cab —the driver, the fireman and a man who appeared like a person who worked about the track. If the third person had had grey pants on he would have noticed it.

Mr Aickin announced at this point that he had ascertained from the Palmerston North station that a lad with grey pants and a brown coat delivered the train advice to the driver at the station. It was necessary for him to wait for some time in the cab until the driver cleaned his hands. He submitted that this disposed of yesterday’s evidence. To further questions, witness said the third person in the cab at Palmerston North was not the youth he saw in the cab at Wellington. The person at Palmerston North looked like a train examiner, but witness did not get a good view of him. Witness denied making any statement that there was a railway cadet in the cab, who travelled from 'Wellington. What he said was that he thought there was a junior stoker or cleaner out of the running shed. To Sir Francis Frazer, witness said that at the time of the accident he didn’t know it was a breach of the regulations for a third person to be in the cab. The train guard, Thomas Henry VZhite, giving evidence, said that after the train examiner at Palmerston North told him the train was right, witness went up to the engine. The fireman was on top to assist with taking in water. The driver came out of the cab and said a man from Fordell had asked him-to stop and the driver Witness said: “No, right on to Aramoho. We have no authority to stop.” Witness went into the first carriage, checked the tickets, and by the time he had finished the train was past Turakina. He had also to count the passengers.