BOARDMAN James -1879 :: BOARDMAN Edith Letitia -1885
Friday 19 December 1879
MELANCHOLY OCCURRENCE
(Dordrecht Guardian)
A sad accident, resulting in the death of Mr. James BOARDMAN, a fine promising young man in his 21st year (son of Mr. Philip BOARDMAN of Holbrook, near Barkly) occurred at an early hour on Monday morning last, on the farm of M. BROMLEY (Driefontein) about two miles from Dordrecht, on the road to Grahamstown, the particulars of which will be gathered from the following deposition taken before Mr. H.A. JENNER, acting C.C. and R.M.
Clement PENNY stated:- I was travelling from Barkly to Queenstown with two wagons loaded with wool. The deceased and myself were lying asleep on the top of the front wagon, and at about half past three in the morning I was startled by hearing the driver of the wagon say “Pas op boss” (Look out master) and before I had time to get off the wagon had capsized, and the deceased and myself both fell underneath the wool. It was about two hours before they got me out, as the boys had first to pull the wagon off the wool before they could get at us; they first found the body of the deceased, who was quite dead. I was seriously hurt and bruised all over. The wagon capsized in a large sluit. The driver had got a short distance off the road, and I presume that owing to its being dark he could not see the sluit until he was on the edge of it. The boys were all perfectly sober; BOARDMAN told them that the road was good from Dordrecht, and it is the usual thing when the road is good for the leader to throw up the reins and come to the wagon. I do not attribute any blame to the boys as being the cause of the accident.
Harry, sworn, deposed: I am driver of Mr. PENNY’s wagon, and knew the deceased. It was just before daybreak that the accident happened. The morning star was just rising when I came to a sluit opposite Mr. BROMLEY’s farm, where the oxen turned out of the road. I ran and turned them, and then went to the break, when the oxen turned down into the sluit again. I then threw away my whip and ran to the front oxen, at the same time calling out to me master Pas Op! as the wagon was falling. The wagon fell, and both wagon and wool fell on top of my master and Mr. BOARDMAN. I loosened the oxen and tried to pull the wagon off the wool by fastening the animals to the middle of the vehicle, but my span could not manage it, so I called out to the other men to bring up the remaining span of oxen, and I then managed to get the wagon off. I then cut the reins that were round the bales of wool and rolled them off my master. I then sent my leader to Mr. BROMLEY’s to get a horse for the purpose of going into town to fetch the doctor. The deceased was lying with his face and half of his body outside the bales of wool, and the other part of his body was firmly jammed between the wool and the ground. I did not hear deceased speak after the wagon fell over, but heard Mr. PENNY say from under the wool “Cut the reins”. I pulled the deceased out from under the wool directly after the wagon had capsized, but it was about two hours after before I got my master out. Just before the wagon fell over there was a sudden jolt, and the left front wheel flew off; this was the wheel nearest to the sluit. I think – in fact I am almost certain – that if the wheel had not come off the wagon would not have capsized, as the oxen had almost stopped. Mr. BOARDMAN was quite dead when we pulled him out from under the wagon. The leader was not with the oxen when the capsize occurred; he was on top of the wool, and jumped off when I shouted to my master. I heard Mr. BOARDMAN say to Mr. PENNY that he could go to sleep, as there were no sluits. This was before we had out-spanned, and when we were all sitting around the fire. We never have a leader in front of the oxen when the road is good.
The spot where the unfortunate accident occurred is a very nasty one, owing to a sharp turn in the road and to the existence of a deep ravine on the one side. We would suggest to the Divisional Council the advisability of having the road there repaired or altered as soon as possible, in order to prevent accidents in the future. The funeral of the late Mr. BOARDMAN took place on Tuesday afternoon and was numerously attended by residents of the town. The remains were interred in the Wesleyan cemetery, the Rev. P. TEARLE officiating. The father and uncle of the deceased arrived here a few hours after the funeral. We tender our sympathy to the bereaved parents in the loss they have sustained through the untimely and unexpected death of their son.
(source: Grahamstown Journal newspaper)
contributed by: Christopher Fitchet
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