The morning call., 1892-05-03
JUMPED THE TRACK.
4 Serious Accident on the Electric
Railroad.
Joseph H: saunders, an Ovsrconhdent Motor
msn, and Several Other Persons Thrown
From Runaway Car.


Yesterday aftern0oni and threw anumOer
&c passeG gers" to the ground, seriously IN
: turing several. and probably one fatally
Among the injured are; J.. II.
l. Joseph II Saunders, motorman. residence
Il2 PGSt.street. +, - -
Mrs. Catherine Flannaghan, residence
..Zoestreet. =.
Fred. Hoamei5ter, civil enEineer' 5:GOlden
place. -.
Alabama street: .
john Brady passenger, residence $40
Tehama street.. - ..---. 49,. 80.
THOMAS Connolly; boy, residence twenty
fourth. and Sanchez streets. =.
=. j. BrandamQur, carpenter, residence 10Y
Hartford street. -
:: Ernest Joues.. residence 100 Fair Oaks
street. 49, 49,. -. -.
: Joseph IL. Saunders was in charge Of car
> of.the. new line, and although not an old
railroad hand WaS.Teearded as competent
man bv-his employers. Ills car was coming
from thercoUnty line 0ward the city, and
WAS crowded to Observation-Disclosures by pas
sengers who we're enjoying tile novelty OF a
ride through a newly developed portion Of
F.. the city. The cars run down. Chenery
street, past, tile Eai{mQunt school, TO Ihlr-
ti6th street, where. they turn down 10 San
joss avenue I itklFIA SLlGGL. Is AdAlltI
Steep, the grade being known TO railroad
..Tlen as a 10 per. cent one. The cars pitch
down tie hill and make abrupt turn into
ThfTtleth< street: The managers Of the
~electuc road INSTRUCTED their mOtorman to
reduce the speed Of The cars when descend
Ing the grade:
r" On. Sunday thousands and thousands Of
people rode oyer .the-T0ad, and as no acci-
: dents occurred thousands more patToniZed
II yesterday. On ear ., which was in charge
of Saunders, fully l25 people were riding
when the car reached the top Of the hill on
It's way" TO IhiTtieth street Saunders
thought nothing Of the fact, and started the
- car down the grade. All went well until
the middle OftEe block was reached. There
some one had Eeen constructing sewer,
and water had, been run over the rOadbed
and wet the tracks. When Saunders car
reached the wet tracks the momentus was
considerable, and he threw on his brakes.
They would not hold 10 the slippery tracks
andthe car gained speed. Then, according
to the railroad people, many passengers
beca me. scared. Some screamed and others
rushed into the mOtOTman'S Enclosure, which
prevented him using him using his brakes
when be reached the dry track, or turning
his crank and cutting OF the electric cir
cult
AT AN ALARMING RATE.
Anyhow. the car sped along at an alarm
ing rate, amid the cries Of the frantic
factthat the car had gotten beyond control Of
the mot0rman. and the lstteTs yelis 10 d
number Of people who were standing on
the track preparing to board it when It
stopped, as customary, just around the
turn,
When the car struck the curve into
rhiTtieth street 1t was thrown on the
wheels on the left side, and ran along nearly
90 feet in this tilted position. Then it
Jumped the track, and immediately came to
adead halt, the wheels burylng themselves
10 the trucks in the soft macad2m. The
sudden stOppagc of the car threw Saunders,
the mOtorman, headforemost from bis post
to the rocky street, he striking on his head.
Fred HoifmeIster was standing on the
rear Of the car. and beng thrown forward
landed IN the street on his shoulder face
and knees His shoulder and wrists we're
spTsined and his nose badly mashed.
. ri. s. UEbaBus sprained his wrist by fall
ing to. tile ground.
Thomas Connolly, 1+yeaT-Old boy, was
badly shaken up and 1t is thought received
q broken arm.
Ernest Jones hand was bruised.
Mrs. Catherine FIannaghan, who Is an
aged lady, was standing on the inside Of the
ear: and had hold of . strap. The shock
threw her across the car seriously straiHing
; her and infietinE, it is thought, internal
Injuries.
j. Brandamour's hands were injured and
John Brady was considerably bruised. Be-
sides these named persons many others were
: thrown and received slight injuries which
did not necessltate Immediate treatment.
a few persons who. we're standing on the
tack unaware Of the fact that the car was
running away, and Who were expecting il TO
be brought 10 sudden stop, we're knocked
down and would have been killed had not
the car miraculousiy sunk into the macadam
: and stopped.
Assistant Superintendent of the road b.
= L. Richards was notified just after the ac-
cident, and with several employees came In
e.. a: wreck ng-car, from the Sunpyside power
house to The scene. When he arrived he
-. found the Seven teenth-st street patrol wagon
preparing TO take the wounded passengers
10 the City and County Hospital, but as he
=. objected, Saunders, who was unconscious,
UEbanus and Hofmeister were by the COM
-;:pany' s.OTdeTs taken 70 St,L0ke's Hospital,
while MIS-. Flannagfian was sent ~ her
:. home with her daughter IN coupe. The
others: who were injured managed to reach
: their. homes as best they could.
- THE MOTORMAN.
Saunders, who received a conclusion of
the brain. was conscious for a short time
last night-When his@wife visited him at the
:#hOspital: His chances Of recovery are con-
sidered veTy-doubtful.
. -. Mrs. Fannaghan Is living very Ill at her
home 4 Zoe. street, and DR.. Kenyon, who
Is attending her, fears that hers are internal
Injuries. Mrs. FlannaglRn, who is a widow,
-. Is 90 years OF age, and consequently the
shock affects her more than the others.
Mrs Flannaghan's daughter. whOwas with
= her, says there was terrible scene on the
: sarwhen: II started on its downward course.
r. Every" one of the passengers was frantic
With: fright and when the car rushed around
The turn and nearly tOppled over those on
- The inside were hurled in all directions.
:: Fred :HOffmelsteT,; who was standing on
The rear of the car, says that he noticed it
gain gin speed when it had half descended
the hill, and yelled to the ether passengers
that there was danger ahead. Before he
bad time TO think Of anything more he was
hurled TO the ground.
-Ihe passengers were too confused to give
any detailed or accurate account of the ac-
cident.
Superintendent ]. w. Hartzen. IN speak
>. ing Of the AFFAIR, said that il was due to the
.OYerc0nfidence of Saunders the motorman.
''He is man we have broken In" said
=: Mr.. Hartzell to CALL representative land
/ suppose he became confused at the critical
moment 1.-The had .put of the eireHt when
?. he found the car getting beyond his con-
troll, thrown on his brakes and reversed the
: :m0tOr the ear.would have been brought to a
halt, and even propelled IN an opposite
direction There must have been some OBJ
stacle on the track or IL would never have
Jumped, even II 1t bad been going at great
speed"
Car 2. was not damaged IN the least, and
= was. soon: replaced on the tracks by the
wrecker, and the heavy traffic renewed.
The cars accommodate 40 people, and the
= officials OF the road say that in future they
Will see that they are not crowded beyond
their capacity.
...*.~ A. VALUABLE SPECIMEN.
o