Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1883-04-30
rR1aHgFuL kccIpEsT.
Woman Mangled and Killed in Gan
Francisco Elevator.

woman Mangled and Killed in Gan
Francisco Elevator
A horrible accident by which a woman
lost her life and two young men narrowly
escaped msngling. occurred in the Nevada
Block building, San Francisco, Saturday,
at l2:l5 o'clock. A few minutes before
that time a middle-aged woman, dressed
rather shabbily, and Joseph B. Horton, an
employee of J. FL. Haggin, entered the ele-
Salisbury. The elevator started up as
usual, but had gone only about half way to
the second floor when it, from come defect
or hitch in the hosting machinery, sud
denly stopped and could not be moved By
the ordinary means. Salisbury tugged at
the ropes until he became convinced that
the machinery would not work and that
the trap.door in the top of the cage would
have to be resorted to for exit. The top of
the cage was so situated that the occupants
could easily step from it to the second
floor. Salisbury accordingly
OPENED THE TRAP DOOR
And crawled On to the top of the cage.
He was followed by Horton, and then the
woman mounted side seat and reached
her arms upward. Salisbury and Horton
took hold of her, each side, and, aided by
the woman's exertions, they pulled her to
their level, she all the while laughing at
her unexpected and apparently comical sit
uation. The two young men stepped out
upon the second floor and held out their
hands to assist the lady from her position
on the cage. Just at the moment when
her body was inclined forward preparatory
to taking the one step which would have
placed her in safety, the cage gave lurcb,
and with the utmost speed of its machinery
sprang upward until the woman's head,
still bent forward and outward, touched
the casing of the floor above, and the heavy
cage still going upward with all the terrific
force of its great weight caught it in be-
tween this casing and the outer edge Of the
elevator, where it acted as wedge and
stopped the ascent with
A SUDDEN, sIcKENING JERK,
At the same moment the lower portion of
the woman's body, impelled by the shock,
shot downward through the open trap,
but the head, held in the cruel wise, re-
manned iammed where it had been caught.
The noise of the crash drew crowd about
the shaft. well in second-men pouring
out of the many Offices and from the street,
and the first admonition they received of
the terrible nature of the accident was q
stream of blood that came spattering
down the aide of the elevator to the first
and the ground floor. No sound was heard
from the unfortunate woman, and her
death must have been instantaneous with
the crash Of her head against the case.
ment. The loud shouts and cries Of the
two young men and the visible presence of
the unfortunate creature informed the
throng of the full extent of the accident,
and shudder of horror permeated it as
THE STREAM OF BLOOD
Came spattering down upon the marble
floor and checked the wooden easements
with it's sanguineous color. Willing hands
were not lacking, and while some persons
fed to the basement to inform the engineer
OF the situation, others busted them
selves to move the cage from the death
grip on the dead woman. Messages
were sent in all directions, and within
few minutes body of police appeared, and
after driving a way through the mob of
herror-stricken men standing in the hall
way and stretching far out into the street,
they formed guard around the shaft and
restrained excited persons from rushing up
and down the steps. While every one had
a theory, no one then present had any
practical knowledge of the shaft workings
of the machinery. The engineer used all
his efforts to make the cage move, but un.
availingly. Meanwhile word had been
sent to the maker of the elevator with
demand for some of his workmen to come
and release the cage. Through some mis-
take or inadvertence, no workmen came
for an hour, and
THE EXCITED MOB,
Rushing to and fro, repeatedly broke
through the line of police to get a glimpse
at the horrid sight. The workmen-two
in number-csme at last, and, clambering
down the shaft rope from the third floor,
they landed at the side of the woman. It
took but few minutes to let loose the
safety clutch, and then the cage fell with
it's triple burden distance of ten feet, the
clutch again catching and holding it. At
the moment of its release the dead body
fell clumsily in heap on the floor of the
cage, with the hideously crushed face in
full view of the men on the first floor, who
peered through the wire. grated doors. The
doors were opened, and the still warm
corpse was carried off in the Coroner's
wagon to the Morgue.
sAULsBURYs INJURIES.
When the cage shot upward Salisbury
made one or two Intellectual efforts to stop
it, and in doing SO his hands were badly
torn. The excitement and the shock com.
pletely overcame him, and he was taken
downstairs in an unconscious condition
from that he lapsed into condition of
temporary insanity, and was conveyed to
his home. Absolutely nothing relative to
the accident could be learned from him.
but Mr.. Horton gave short account Of it
as above.
It was at first rumored that the dead
woman was Mrs. Cecilia Miller, the pro-
prietresa of the Auzerais House, on Dupont
street, but upon investigation the report
proved to be untrue. The body was ex-
posed for Identification at the morgue, but
up to II o'clock last night no one recognized
her. In fact, recognition by the face would
be extremely difficult, as the front OF it
from above the center between the eyes is
crushed into the skull. The fall Of the
body through the trap while the head was
held to the easement by the cage broke the
neck.
AT THE MoRGuE.
The body as it lies stretched upon the
slab at the morgue is that of we'll
nourished, feshy woman, five feet two
inches in hight. The hair is dark brogn,
streaked with gray. She was dressed in
black clothes, brown underskirt, wore
black shawl, and buttoned CATERS. The
hat is of black straw, with velvet trim
mings, black and purple feathers. Upon
her person was found about $500 in coin,
nearly all geld, two gold and one silver
watch, three gold and one silver ring. The
watches are all Of the kind used by gentle.
men. On the inside OF one ring of plain
gold is the word "Flaty." Besides the gold
q largo bundle of mining stock shares was
found on her body. Most of these articles
were concealed about her person, and
it would appear that the unfortunate