The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1897-04-05
DEATHS HARVEST
Whisky Holes of Topeka Get
in Their Cursed Work.
One Man Drunk, Run Over and
Killed.
A Young Girl Made Drunk and
Debauched
IN AN EMPTY BOXCAR.
Topeka Returning to the HOr-
rOrs of Saloon Days
While County Officials Remain
Inactive.
Only a Short Time Before
Drunken Murders Begin.

William E. May, a stonecutter of 1920
Harrison street, started home from the
lower part of the city Saturday night
after midnight, drowsy with liquor,
laid or fell down on the Santa Fe rail-
road tracks south of Tenth street and
was run over and instantly killed by
eastbound Santa Fe passenger train
No. at 80 o'clock yesterday morning.
This is the theory of Coroner Wester-
field, who yesterday held an inquest
over the mutilated remains of the
young stOnecutter.
Saturday night young May, who was
21 years of age and the son of Jas J.
May, q. stOnecutter, at whose house he
resided, carOuSed in Smoky Row. He
was in several of the dives and is said
to have drank freely. Some time after
midnight he started home, and, as he
had often done before, took the Santa
Fe railroad track as a route, it being
rather shorter. This suggests the
theory that he must have been in some
dives near the Santa Fe shops just
previous to his starting home. He
walked south on the tracks and this
was the last seen of him alive. Just
south of Tenth street he must either
have fallen upon the tracks and injured
himself so that he could not rise, or he
sank down in a drunken sleep. The
real facts will never be known.
Santa F'e passenger train No. 8, with
Engineer Peter Anderson of 412 Mon
completely seVering his body at the
abdomen. Neither the engineer nor
the trainmen discovered the accident,
and the body lay for some time on the
tracks, mutilated almost beyond rec
ognition. Some time after this Pa
troITnen Campbell and Rucker while
walking south on the tracks, found the
body Coroner WeSterfield was nOti-
fed and he viewed the body. Stoker's
ambulance was sent to the scene of the
accident and took the remains to the
undertaking rooms.
At a short distance south of Tenth
street was where young William May
lost his life. When the body was found
the trunk was lying near the main
track while the two lower limbs had
been carried some distance north and
thrown several feet to one side. The
forehead had been struck by something
sharp and a deep cash cut. The sight
was a sickening one. After the BODY
had been removed to the undertaken
pieces of flesh and bone and portions
of clothing were picked up alongside
the tracks for a distance OF 1OO rect
north of where the accident occurred
Engineer Peter Anderson says that
he did not see the man lying on the
track neither did he notice the Jar
which must have occurred as the
wheels ground the body in two. He
says he whistled at the regular place
of warning for the Tenth street cross
ing, but saw no one there
Coroner Westerfield held an inquest
Yesterday morning dL k7NO4ASA
taking rooms The place of the acci-
dent, the condition of the body, etc,
were explained by witnesses. The
verdict of the jury was that William
E May came to his death Sunday
morning by being run over by Santa
After this the body was given in
charge of the deceased's parents, who
made arrangements for the burial
There seemed to be no doubt that
the killing was purely an accident. 1t
is known that May was not along the
tracks until some time after midnight,
for the patrolmen who found MIN
walked over the very spot on which the
accident occurred just after the night
train for the west had passed.
The deceased was a single man ana
- ot his fathers home. He and
his father both were stonecutters,
though the son had done but little
work lately 1t is said that he mas
been drinking considerable OF late
Railroad men say that the Mays often
return to their home at night by way
of the railroad track, as it is shorter
The scene of the accident was yester-
dav made a. point of curiosity Thous-
ands of people visited the place and
traced the blood marks on the rails
and ties Many visited the under
takers place to view the body