The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1893-01-07
DANGEROUS SPORT
The Fourteenth Street ooastins
Track the Scene Last Night
OF SEVERAL BAD ACCIDENTS,
Two Young Men have Legs Broken
and Girls Arm is FractuFed.-An.
other Youth is Badly Bruised and
Cut in the Left sIde.,Two or Three
Bob sleds are Wrecked there Also

Ever since this spell Of told fashioned
winter" set in coasting has shared the
tayors OF the public with skating and
sleighing, and judging from the crowds
Of participants and spectators that
blackened the best tracks, has had the
lions share OF the popularity, Two or
three minor accidents have been re-
corded, but none very serious occurred
until last night, and 1t is doubtful II
any could occur serious enough to
dampen the ardor Of lovers OF the
sport.
Last night the track on Fourteenth
street, the best and longest in town,
was simply thronged, From a point east
Of Woods street TO point west Of
Market, over q quarter OF q mile IN
length, there was one continuous track
NJ smooth as anybody could desire to
see. In fact it was in many places too
smooth. as the sleds slid aidewlse at
Certain 10y points,
The street from the top Of the slope
TO the bottom was literally black with
people. Not less than q thousand men,
women and children were coasting or
watching others coast.
And tho sledsl A greater variety
was never seen in one collection In tho
world. There were little sledS, barely
long enough to seat one small boy, and
there were long double.jointed bob
seds which held fourteen grown men
and women,
It was the big fellows that made the
news last night, Ashort, light sled is
not liable to do anybody serious damage,
but TO collide with one OF those big fel'
lows with a ton or SO OF humanity on II
is very much like being struck with q
cannon ball.
The first serious accident was when a
long bob sled got TO sliding sidewise
lust opposite Byron street, and another
heavily laden one ran into 1t. The
foremost sled was broken'in two in tho
middle and several oil, its dozen or so
passengers were thrown off
Owen Sullivan, young son OF the ex.
saloon keeper, was on the wrecked
sled, and he was struck by the other
one, and his left leg was badly broken
in two places. He was carried across
tho street TO Dr. II. NJ. Baird's Office,
where his injuries were attended to,
and he was then removed to his home.
Only little while after another large
sled ran into the curbstone on the south
side OF Fourteenth street, east OF Eotf.
One Of the passengers, Ed Gruber, a son
Of Mr.. Fred Gruber, got his left leg be.
tween tho sled aud the curb in some
way, anditwas broken. Ho was hauled
on his sled around to DIR. Billiards.
office, where the bone'was set, aud lie
was then taken home.
Not long after a young girl whose
name was said to BIO Waters, was
thrown from sled by striking tho
curb at the corner OF Fourteenth and
Byron streets, and a sled which close
behind that on which she was ran over
ono OF her arms, breaking the small
bone. She was taken to a physician's
office by friends.
While DIR. Baird was dressing young
Sullivan's injuries another man who
had been painfully hurt farther up the
street was brought to his Office. This
man had no bones broken, and his
name could not be learned.
Another young fellow was badly cut
on the left hip by being thrown from a
sled and struck by another.
About half past ten o'clock Ed Bond,
Of the Island, was on a sled which coll
lided with the curbstone on Fourteenth
street near Jacob, and his right leg was
badly cut and bruised below the knee.
He was hauled to Market street on q
sled and assisted into Schnepfs drug
store, where the wounded limb was eX-
aminod and dressed, and he went TO his
home in street cur. II wg4
The only wonderful tho hundreds of
people who watched the coasting was
thatthere were no moro accidents. An
lSTELLiGENGER reporter watched the So
called sport for h0lfan hour, andin that
time saw threeof the big sleds wrecked,
one person seriously and several slight
ly hurt.
1t was suggested by a number OF
people last night that II was time for
the police to regulate the sport, but
when this was suggested to police.
man he said tho entire foNce could not
regulate 1t. They might stop it shortit
tho whole forco would try, but no
thought u better arrangement would be
for tho board OF public works to secure
u lot OF cinders and scatter them oil
over the icy part OF the street.
H