Douglas George Rix Gordon

Douglas Gordon was knocked down.

He had left his house, Freshfields in Kings Drive to go to a rehearsal of the Dramatic Society. He was found by a lorry driver on the Kings Road as he was heading towards Eastbourne near the bend by St Georges School ground. He said that Douglas Gordon was lying in the middle of the road on his face and said that he tried to make him comfortable and sent a cyclist off to get the police. He said that Douglas Gordon was lying in a dark spot where trees obscured the light, lying approximately midway between two lamp posts.

A policeman that was called out said that when he arrived he found Douglas Gordon lying on his back in a pool of blood about 30 yards from the nearest street lamp. He said that there was a misty rain at the time and said that he could find no marks on the road.

It was noted that there was a footpath there along the road but that it wasn't made up and said that people usually used the path when the weather was fine but that when it was wet the path was apt to be muddy and that people would tend to walk in the road.

After he was knocked down he was taken to hospital where he told his wife that he had missed the buss and had started to walk and had tried to stop a car.

He said that the car that knocked him down was a four-seater.

He was admitted to the hospital at 8.30pm on 18 October 1935, but had been in a semi-conscious state and said nothing about the accident. He improved for a day or two but then took a turn for the worse.

Medical evidence stated that the only obvious injuries on admittance were a scalp wound and haemorrhage of the left eye as well as signs of cerebral depression. No question of an operation arose and his death was attributed to hypostatic pneumonia associated with heart failure.

The doctor said that his injuries were consistent with having been knocked down by a car. He said that in addition to bruising, there was an injury to his left collar bone and said that it was probable that he had been struck a glancing blow on the right side and that he then fell down on his left side.

When the doctor asked if he thought that Douglas Gordon was probably going to die the doctor said that he thought so on his admission and also after his relapse. When asked whether he thought of taking his dying deposition the doctor said that he didn't think that Douglas Gordon was ever fit enough to do so.

The police said that the lack of a dying deposition made their job harder because they did not have a description of the car.