Sadness as Patrick Cassidy, Slane, killed in fall from horse
July 1938
TRIUMPH turned into tragedy for Mr. Patrick Cassidy, Littlewood Slane, who met his death while returning from the Navan Show on Tuesday evening in what Coroner J. J. Lynch described as “a quite inexplicable accident.”
The deceased, whose family specialises in the breeding of mares of this kind, had been taking home a mare that had won first prize at the Show. Dinner had been spent joking and laughing about the Show. On the way home the deceased had been given a “leg-up” on the mare when she suddenly bolted down the road and threw him heavily to the ground. The sting of a horse fly seems the most probable cause of the sad fatality.
One of a large family who have carried on farming extensively in the Slane district, the deceased was an expert in the handling of horses. He had just touched the forties. He was a brother of Mr. Thomas Cassidy, who is so well known as the energetic Secretary of the Slane Ploughing Match Committee. A sister is Mrs: Foley, of Cannistown, Navan, while another brother is a member of the D.M.G force at Store Street Station, Dublin.
The mare, which was the cause of the sad occurrence, has been the winner of five red rosettes and a second.
The remains were removed to Slane Church on Wednesday evening and the funeral took place from there on Thursday to Grangegeeth, being very largely attended.
At the inquest, Thomas Cassidy, Slane, fanner, brother of the deceased, stated that the deceased was 41 or 42 and single. He was in front of him on the road leading another horse They had left the Show together between 1.30 and 2. His brother was leading a mare and foal. After dinner they left Navan about 2.30. Deceased told witness to go ahead and that he would mount the mare. Witness went ahead. He heard a crash and saw deceased in the act of falling off; the mare was making a plunge.
Witness made an effort to grab the animal but the mare swerved and deceased, who had been unsaddled fell off. The mare struck witness, who fell. He ran to his brother, but he made no move and when spoken to did not answer. Tommy Brady ran for help. Witness accompanied his brother to the hospital. He made an attempt to speak on the way and mumbled something. Deceased was sober at the time and in the best of spirits.
Directing the jury, the Coroner said it was a quite inexplicable accident. The mare was quiet and the deceased accustomed to handling her and horses. The deceased was quite sober and they would never know how the mare bolted. He added that it was possible it .might have been the sting of a horse-fly, or something like that, and the jury would have no difficulty in following the medical evidence.