Mexborough and Swinton Times February 14, 1930
Fell under Dray
Conisbrough Policeman’s Killed
Child Eye Witness
The death of Edward Derek Driver, Son of PC Edward Driver, of the West Riding Constabulary, within eight days of his fifth birthday anniversary, was inquired into by Mr WH Carlile and the Jury at the Star Hotel Conisbrough on Friday morning.
The father identified the body, and said the child was on its way to Morley Place school. It had been attending for about six months, but had resumed only two days before of the month absence through illness. He saw the child from his home at 12 Clifton Hill, who was accompanied by other and all the children, as usual.
Hubert Leslie Greasby, a carter employed by his father at Church Farm, Conisbrough, said he was driving a two horse dray laden with timber from the Colliery Station on Thursday morning. Just after turning from Church Street into Morley Place, he turned to see if the man who accompanied him was in the back of the dray, it was then he noticed that the nearside rear wheel was over a child. He pulled up at once and ran back. He thought the child was dead when they picked him; he heard neither shout nor scream; the first he knew of the child’s presence was when he happened to glance back from his companion. He was walking on the left-hand side of his horses, and they were moving very slowly. It was about 8:50 am when the accident happened.
The Coroner: Have you any theory as to how the accident happened? – I haven’t.
A juryman: How far was the timber hanging over the back of the dray? – About a yard
Invited by the Coroner to question the witness, PC Driver suggest that what happened was that one of the horses stood on the boys but while he was standing pressed against the wall with another boy as the dray passed; and that the horse pulled the boy under the wheels.
Greasby: No, that is not so. I never saw the child at all.
PC Driver: I accept your answer. The child who told me this Sir (the coroner) was very young, and I should not like to take too much notice of what he says: I am satisfied with Greasby statement.
Thomas Randall, a nine year old boy whose home is at 7 Elm Green Ln, said he was going down Morley Place with a message for his teacher. He saw Derek Driver sitting on the low wall left-hand side of the road where the dray was just passing. Then he seemed to slip and fall onto the road under the dray.
Did you actually seen the slip under the wheel? – I did not see the wheel go over him, because I turned away so that I should not see
Did you notice where the driver of the dray was? – He was walking by the side of the arts.
The Coroner: Thank you. I think you have given your evidence very well stop
Eliza Smith, wife of John Smith, of eight School Terrace, said she was talking to another woman below where the dray was passing, and happened to look round she saw a boy in a blue coat trying to get hold of the timber or something at the back of the dray. She called him to him to get off, and he went towards a low wall already mentioned. It was then she saw the other little boy on the ground. She had not seen him fall. She and the driver reached the boy simultaneously.
Doctor D.T. Clark said he saw the boy in an adjoining house between 9.05 and 9.10. He was dead. The skull, left leg, and left arm were fractured, and the fracture of the skull was the cause of death, which in his opinion would be instantaneous.
The jury found a verdict of “Accidental death” and added an expression of sympathy.