Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-09-24
JUMPING FOR LIFE.
The Close Shave of a Night
Cars Passengers.
FIFTEEN PERSONS IN DIRE PERIL.

An Open Draw, an Unmonasea5Ie Street
Car and Plunge into the Fetid Wa
tiers of the Chicago River-The Warn
Ing of DANCE, Given Just in Time-A
Sleeping Mans Opportune Awakening
and Experience.
CHICAGO, Sept. 24-"Jump for your
livesl We're going into the riverl' That
is what startled the passengers on the
Lincoln avenue night car early this morn
ing as it approached the Clark street
bridge, shouted simultaneously almost by
| the driver of the car and the well-known
"Gus" Frauenburg, conductor of that par
ticuiar car for ever so many years. Fiji
teen persons narrowly escaped cold bath
| and possibly death. The car tumbled
over the north approach of the bridge into
the cold waters shortly before I O'Clock.
The passengers scrambled through the
doors and windows as the car shot down
| the incline from the viaduc
Close Call for McAtee.
George p. McAtee, of the Owings build
| ing, was asleep in the corner of the car.
and did not wake mp until the front end
of the big yellow box toppled over the
brink of the approach. He jumped just
as the car and horses fell into the water
The accident was the result of the fail
ure of the brake to work after the car
struck the long incline leading down to
the approach from the viaduct
Brakes Refused to Work.
The driver says he applied the brake,
but the car. instead of hating. shot down
against the horses, and striking them
with good deal of force, sent them tear
ing down the hill He could not control
either the brake or the horses When
they heard the warning cry. the passen-
gers jumped for the doors and windows.
they fairly climbing over each other in
| their haste to get out. and with rare good
luck all succeeded in reaching the street
before the car took its tumble. Nobody
was hurt. The driver, Schandein, jumped
when the horses were plunging over the
brink of the approach.
Plunge of the Car and Horses
The car went down end over end. The
horses broke loose from il in the water
and made gallant fight for their lives.
One turned his head down stream and
started in the direction of State street. A
tug captain who saw the animal swim
ming started in pursuit to rescue the
brute If possible, but it drowned The
second horse, n handsome bay was "A poor
swimmer, and after an Intellectual effort
to cross the river sank to the bottom AS
he went under he neighed ptifully, but
the big crowd of spectators on the bridge
and approaches were> unable to help him.
Mr.. McAtce Tells About 1t.
|. George p Meat e's escape from the car
just AS it took the plunge was miracu-
lous. a thought, he said afterward in
speaking of the adventure chat | was
done for. | didn't wake up until we were
half way down the grade The other pas
sengers were climbing over each other in
wild effort to get out. The conductor
was calling on every body to escape The
driver was wrenching his brake handle
and pulling the heads off the frightened
horses. Ii took me second or two to re-
alize the situation, but did not move I'M
til saw the driver jump from his post.
by the Skin of His Teeth
"Then | saw the open draw. sp rang to
the door, jumped clear across the plat
form, and landed on the paveman. the
moment the car tumblcd over | thought
for second that somebody had gone
down" Gus, the conductor, is known TO
every night worker who Hoes on the north
side. He has been in charge of the same
car over eleven years, and during that
| time he has never had an accident He
attributes hast nights affair 10 the fact
that his veteran partner and driver Pat"
was not on the front platform.
Narrow Escape of Cab.
cab containing two women, that was
standing on the track, had narrow
escape from being carried over the ap-
proach As it was, the driver heard the
| cries of the driver and passengers
only just in time to pull out
of the way of the frightened horses. An
exciting episode of the accident WAS
the summoning of Il brigade of fire en-
gines and hook and ladder trucks The
tire fighters did everything they could to
| save the horses but being without proper
| appliances they We're forced to reluctantly
abandon the task