James Seeley of Hartest said he saw deceased driving a little pony and cart near his house.

"He asked me where he was, I said Hartest, he said how far is it to Bury, I said about 9½ miles, he asked me if there was a public house was nearby, I told him Hartest Crown was about ½ a mile down in the village, after I got down there he asked me where Mr Ruffel lived, I told him about ¾ of mile off in the common, we shook hands and he bade me goodbye, he said 'I will see you in the morning', he then drove fast down the hill, he seemed intoxicated, I told him to 'mind how you drive down there as it is a bad hill', he seemed alright when I left home.

I cannot tell whether it is the body of the man who drove off, it seemed to be but I had never seen him before so I can't tell."

John Garwood of Hartest …

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