The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-05-31

MoRrALY ~ ON CRY RAILROADS AND OMNI-
busEs.-Jt is high time that measures were
taken f II the protection Of life and limb in this
city. During the last month, scarcely day
has passed without taxing the descriptive
Pc wers of our reporter of accidents. Nine
.enths of the cases are those Of persons run
over by our city rail cars and stages. One day
it is child run over by stage and halfkilled.
The day before, we heard of man being struck
by an Eighth avenue car, and escaping. with a
dislocated thigh. An old lady had been knock
cd down by the cars in Centre street the day
previous, and it was doubtful whether she
would recover. This followed close upon the
case Of q man knocked down and run over in
Broadway by an omnibus And only the day
before we had an account Of an axletree Of q
Fourth avenue stage breaking, and an unfortu-
nate passenger being precipitated to the
ground. The twenty-four hours previous had
witnessed the Harlem train run over a man in
Centre street. Needless to say that the New
Haven cars did not belle their reputation !;
within thirty-six hours we find two accidents.
both of which were deemed very serious occur
ring on their line within the city. But it were
waste Of time to attempt to enumerate or
classify casualties. Every one who has
walked through Broadway, or the avenues,
is equally familiar with the recklessness of the
drivers and the perils Of pedestrians. If the
streets and crossings were solely frequented by
able-bodied men. endowed with senses and
reason one might naturally incline at least to
divide the blame of such accidents between the
destroyer and the victim. But we need
not point out how small proportion of the
throng belongs to this category. The crowd
that lines either side Of Broadway and is
seen rushing frantically across busy thorough
fares, is mainly composed of women and chill
dren. OF old men there are few. whose hob
bling gait and infrm tread impart thrill of
apprehension for their safety. But the weaker
sex and helpless infants constitute large
majority of those who are daily exposed to the
results OF reckless driving. 1t is among
them that the bulk of the accidents we chroni-
Gle occur. They are. in nine cases out of ten,
the victims of carelessness which it is in
the power of the authorities to prevent.
City rail cars and omnibuses do not rest on
precisely the same grounds in this matter.
The former are tolerated under special license,
and controlled by regulations which were held
to be sufficient for the public safety. Their
speed was prescribed by law. Complete
ness in their locomotive apparatus was
one of the conditions of their existence. Unfor-
tunately, it is impossible to foresee every dam
;o1J rbop 4ba of sp;p
men is set to work to defeat the law. 1t was
not formally required of the city railroad COM
panies that the brakes of their cars should be
kept in uniform good order; the consequence
has been that Mr.. Levi Peek. conductor on the
Hudson River line from Thirty first street, tells
quently so much out of order that they cannot
stop at Fourteenth, Christopher, and Canal
streets, as the advertisements promise they will.
Such accidents as the fracture of brake are
by no means unknown on the Eighth avenue
line We need hardly point out to our readers
the danger of allowing cars to travel through
the city at rate Of five miles an hour, without
any means of checking their speed: the casual
ties recorded from day to day in our city intel
ligence afford abundant testimony on the point.
If no other means can be devised for eyacting
from our city railroad companies proper re-
gard for the public safety, we should advocate
the appointment of a public Inspector, whose
duty it should be to visit and examine
every car on the line ct SECULAR intervals,
and require the immediate performance
of necessary repairs: the salary of such
officer to be betrayed by special tax on the
companies. We are well aware that an objec-
ton may be urged against such course.
Some will consider that it is not enough to
assail one abuse, when so many others call for
legislative interference. Still, we would wish
to see the attention Of the Legislature and the
Common Council drawn to the subject. If we
cannot secure comfort and convenience, let US
at least try to insist on safety. II this be I'M
attainable, the sooner the railroads are taken
out Of the hands of their present owners the
better.
Omnibuses stand on different footing. 1t is
hardly our province to call the drivers to ac-
count for their daily violation of orders-to in
quire how it happens that stages with passengers
from South ferry, at 10 P. NJ. are obliged to wait
ten minutes at the door Of each place of public
amusement, till the driver is tired-to signal
ize similar delays at each corner on the jour
ney downwards-to complain Of the admission
of improper people, the use of wet cushions and
filshy straw. These are, all of them. annoying
enough in their way; but we fear we can offer
nothing to the sufferers but our sincere SYM
h.,
a very different matter. Stage drivers are
bound, like every other CLASSIC men to exercise
their calling with due regard to the safety of
the public We have no hesitation in saying
that they do exercise that calling as though
human Life was of less value than the accuracy
of their time table. Stopping as they do, in
violation of rules, at half dozen uptown
streets, to look for stray passengers, they are
obliged, when they reach the lower part of the