The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-08-05
IT WAS A NEW BRAKE.
A Dangerous Experiment on
the Hudson City Decline
RESULTS IN A RUNAWAY CAR.
A Cow Served as a Buffer, and Prob
ably Saved Many Lives.

People who claim that cows are nuis-
ance in city may, after service rendered
by one of them. on Saturday, change their
opinions. 1t saved the lives of number
of persons.
Fo- some time the Jersey City and Ber-
gen Horse Car Company have been exper-
imenting with new brake. 1t is pat
ented by j. L. Brown, and is entirely diff
ferent from any brake used on street cars.
The power to it is given by the axle, on
which is attached cone wheel divided in
two parts. A chain connects this to the
iour brake shoes, and lever that works
from left to right manipulates it. 1t is SO
constructed that child's strength is ex-
pected to be sufficient to operate it and
thus lessen the drivers work
The car that had this brake on it was
placed in charge, of Driver Matthew
Davis, one of the most reliable men in the
employ of the company.
THE NEW BRAKE.
On Monday and Tuesday it was given q
fair trial and was reported success.
Saturday it was put on the road for work,
and when it reached the Newark avenue
hill at Palisade avenue it was well filed
with passengers, and obeying the direc-
tions of the driver as quietly as lamb.
proclivities entirely disappeared. 1t be-
came lion and an ugly one at that.
Driver Davis wanted to proceed down
the steep hill in mild and sedate man
ner, but the car, or rather the brake, OBJ
jected. 1t had been exercised just long
enough to feel spirited and it wanted to
show what it could do.
A DASH DOWN HILL.
1t started on q run that was far from
pleasant. Driver Davis appreciated this
fact at once and grasped the new brake.
1t refused to work, the horses began to
jump and the passengers to get excited.
When assured that the new brake
would not stop the car Davis seized the
old one, which as a safeguard had not
been removed, and fiercely turned the
handle. 1t only went half way, for the
handle of the lever of the new brake was
in the way. By this time the unruly
car showed plainly that business was
meant and the speed with which it was
reaching the sharp turn on the hill Just
a few feet from the bridge was terrific.
Female passengers screamed and bOlted
for the door, which was barred by Chris
tophel Smith and Freeholder Nc
Donough.
Conductor Fitzpatrick assisted these
gentlemen in preventing the women and
children from jumping from the car and
at the same time Christy Smith tried to
apply the brake at the rear end of the car.
Driver Davis was in. Every one expected
to dash over the banks of the street into
the meadow below as soon as the car
reached the turn, but through the good
management of the driver the turn was
made in safety, but it was only to con-
front another danger. Three cows were
near the raised trestle work of the bridge.
The driver in the meantime was doing
his utmost to control his horses and work
the brake.
COW AS BUMPER.
Beside him stood Circuit Court Clerk
Edward Gritten
Pull down that brake, shouted Davis,
to him, indicating the new one.
This was done by Gritten, who used all
his strength and succeeded in removing
the lever from the handle of the old
brake. This had no sooner been done
than an obliging cow IN some mysterious
manner allowed herself to get between
the two plunging horses that were doing
their utmost to keep ahead of the car.
The dashboard of the car struck the cow
q good blow and forced it into a run. The
COW was more tired than the car and at
nearly every leap it was urged on by the
dashboard.
A RIOT IN THE CAR.
Thoroughly frightened and frantic at
this, the passengers screamed louder and
fought harder than ever to force their
way from the car. In doing this Surro-
gate O'Neil and Deputy Surrogate James
Lillis were forced from the rear platform
and injured. But for the energetic ac-
tions and good Judgment of Christy Smith
and Freeholder McDonough, who fought
the struggling passengers back, others
would have been equally unfortunate.
AT Seventh street the accommodating
COW and the use of the old brake stopped
the car. The passengers We're calmed,
and Messrs. McDonough and Smith went
back to help Surrogate O'Neil and his
deputy Mr.. Lillis was not much injured,
but it was necessary to carry the Surro-
gate to the Office of the Jersey City Gene
terry. where he remained an hour before
recovering sufficiently to be taken home.
No bones were broken, but his body was
much bruised.
Mr.. Lillis attended his duties at his
Office this morning, but the Surrogate was
unable to.
THE BRAKE INVENTOR EXPLAINS.
When l saw Mr.. Brown, the inventor of
the brake, he said the accident was caused
by the driver becoming excited when the
new brake refused to work, and that had
he remained collected and cool he would
have had no difficulty. He said the brakes
would, in the future, be so arranged that
the handle of one cannot interfere with
the other.
Assistant Superintendent Beatty said he
did not blame the driver, but was not pre-
pared to make any statement, although he
kindly showed me the car and machinery.
Driver Davis was on car No. 66 when I
saw him, and he said that he would make
no statement for publication, for he had
already made one to the president of the
company. Clerk Gritten, however, said
Davis was as cool as a man could be un-
der the circumstances, and he deserved
much credit for his work and Judgment.
Gritten was positive that had it not been
for the drivers presence of mind lives
would have been lost. The brake will be
repaired and the experiment continued.
Why the break refused to work could not
be ascertained.
SOCIALISM EXPLAINED.
Thomas b. Preston's Address to the
Ga.