The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-10-23
SAW MOT HER KILLED
Mrs. Mary MeKenna's Two
Children Watch Her Die
Under Trolley Wheels.
RUN DOWN ON GRAND STREET.
A Panic Stricken Crowd vainly
Try to Extricate the Dying
Woman.
RUN DOWN ON GRAND STREET.
CARS SMASH INTO THE WRECK.

Mrs Annie McKenna, widow in straight
ened circumstances lived with her two chill
dren, a boy and a girl, at No. 26a Grand
street. Two weeks ago her husband dropped
dead on Barrow street, and since that time
she has been striving day and night to pro
vide living for herself and her two small
children. Today she lies in her humble
home a mangled corpse, the victim of a
trolley car, mourned by her children,
scarcely old enough to realize their loss.
Soon after seven o'clock last night Mrs.
McKenna cleared away the supper table,
and after arraying her children in their best
started with them to attend the vesper SER
vice at st. Peters Church, of which she was
a member. Her home is on the south side
of Grand street, and with the children, each
ciasping one of her hands, she walked down
Grand street to Grove. Here she concluded
to cross over on the north side of the street.
As she reached the car tracks car No. 106, of
the Bayonne line, came bowling along at
high rate of speed. The children saw the
approaching car, and, screaming broke
away from their mothers clasp and ran to
the sidewalk, while several passersby, who
saw the woman's danger, shouted to her to
run.
FORCED UNDER THE CAR.
The screams and shouting seemed to be-
wilder Mrs. McKenna. and she hesitated as
if in doubt which way to go, and in min
ute the car struck her and hurled her under
the wheels. The motorman. Charles Egel,
began to apply the brakes frantically as
could stop the car the front wheels had
passed over her body, and she was jammcd
bleeding mangled mass between the front
wheels and the motor.
Immediately, as if by magic. large
throng of men, women and children gath
cred about the car completely filling the
street from curb TO curb. Strong men
caught hold Of the crushed and bruised
women and strove to drag her from her
position but SO tightly wedged was she that
all their efforts to extrlcate only served to
produce groans from the trolley's suffering
victim.
The sight of her sufferings seemed to de-
moralize the crowd. Men with launched
faces ran about, calling to each other to try
various ways OF extricating her. One sug-
gestion would no sooner be made than the
crowd would start to carry it out, only to
abandon it the next moment when some one
suggested something else.
Women and children surged around the
car, adding their shrill treble to the general
uproar, all producing scene never before
witnessed in thatneighborhood
THE PANIC INCREASED
While this was going on word of the acci-
dent was sent to the power house, and
working car was sent down to clear away
the wreck. As the car approached the scene
the sight of the tnrOng surging about the
mangled woman and the excitement which
prevailed unnerved the motorman, and be-
fore he could stop his car it dashed into the
wrecked one, smashing its windows. sending
broken glass and sphnters in all directions
and driving the wheels further upon Mrs
McKenna.
The wrecking car had hardly come to
standstill when another car was seen APP
preaching on the same track The frenzied
crowd set up shout and began to scatter in
all directions This appears to have ratified
the third moCorman for he too failed to stop
his motor, and it plunged into the wrecker.
sending another shower of broken glass and
splintered wood among the throng. At this
the crowd became panic stricken, and then
followed a scene which battles description.
A few cool heads, however, realized that
the only way. the woman could be taken
from under the wheels, was to lift the car
some distance above the tracks, which, after
much tugging, hauling, and lifting was
finally accomplished, twenty minutes after
the car struck the woman.
While all this was going on the McKenna
children stood near the car watching in open
mouthed astonishment their mother slo wly
dying.
PICKED UP DEAD.
As soon as the car was lifted clear of the
tracks strong arms gently took up the poor
woman and bore her to Kraus' drug store.
She was limp, and as far as could be seen did
not breathe. No physician was at hand, and
Druggist kraus, after examining her care
fully, pronounced her dead. She was fright
fully inangled. Both her legs were crushed
to a jelly and there was an ugly incision on
the abdomen. Her neck was also lacerated
and torn, and her body was also covered
with cuts and bruises After being viewed
by the Coroner the sbody was removed to
Mrs. McKenna's home.
nNT NInTEc