Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-05-28
THE ssDEAD NAM, DID III.
The Death Of VIM. Dawes Attributed
to Negligence.
bow THE TELEPHONE POLE CANE TO FAIL-rEsTI-
MONY AT THE CoRoNER's INQUEST To-DAY-THE
'DEAD MAN" SLIPPED AND LET THE POLE FALL


dead MAN" SLIPPED AND LET THE POLE FALL
Coroner Patterson to-day held an inquest at the
sixth precinct station In the case OF VIM Dawes
the young man who was killed Saturday after
noon III the alley leading out Of ~ street on the
west side just north OF the corner OF Pennsylvania
avenue, by the falling OF pole which the de-
ceased and others were engaged in erecting in the
alley for the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone
Co. The following served as Jurors: owen Nc
Gee John Holmes, Luke Madison, Isaac STOCKS
Richard Merriman, and Jas. Brosnan.
One OF the appliances used in raising the pole,
ana which Slipped, causing the fatal accident was
brought to the station house. This appliance has
the ominous name OF the dead man" The 'dead
man" Is the prop used to support the pole when
the men with pixies are getting new hold. 1t is
beam about 10 feet long, having two spikes In the
end that rests on the ground, and an iron cradle
center Of the cradle is spike or spear" which is
supposed to stick into the wood OF the pole and
prevent 1t from slipping. The witnesses to-day
The first witness Martin Donaldson said that he
heard that the men In charge had been warned
that the "dead man" was not safe. The spear, he
said, was not long enough. 1t was the witness
opinion that IL the block and fall, which was. ON
the ground at the time had been used the acct
dent would not have happened
A. p. Crenshaw, Jr, superintendent OF construc-
ton OF the telephone company, testified that the
pole was about two,thirds OF the way up when the
said, explain why 1t slipped, the same
~dead man" had about two hours before
been used in setting q much higher and much
larger pole in an alley in the same square. The
condition OF the hole in which the pole was TO
stand had nothing, he said, to do with the falling.
They had q block and fall on the ground, but they
never used block and fail In erecting a pole, ex-
cept when there is another pole near by cOnve-
nient to hook the block to. The witness said that
he had not been warned that the ''dead man" was
unsafe.
Charles Parker and Thomas Parker gave testi-
mOny to show that the men were working In q very
narrow place. where IL was fnconvenient to handle
the pole Thomas Parker said that the hole was
partly filled with water, and as they raised the
pole the butt kept slipping In the mud.
He did not think they had sufficlent room TO
raise the pole in the alley, IN the manner at
would have been impossible for 1t to fall
'dead man." said the pole was "dry" and the
'spear" would not take hold OF dry wood as easily
as In green wood. The witness said the alley was
SO narrow that but few men could be at work rails
ing the POLE and they had TO raise 1t "a little at
time by jumps"
DIT. Lachlan Tyler testified to Dawes Injuries
The Jury after twenty minutes consultation
rendered q verdict that Dawes came to his death
from injury OF the abdomen and bladder received
in the falling OF telegraph pole and that ''the
jury believe that the accident was due TO the
negligence Of the employees OF the Chesapeake and
Potomac Telephone Co In not using the proper
appliances In raising the pole"