The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-09-03
NEGRO ELECTROCUTED
JIM PERRY SHOCKED TO DEATH
 YESTERDAY MORNING.
Tragedy Occurred on Pole at the Corner of Dexter Avenue and Perry Street-Body Hung
 in Mid-Air.

Jim Perry, a negro lineman, T years of age, employed by the Montgomery Light and Power Company, was electro
 peSer on a ahd ehd Perry sree s 10 o'clock yesterday morning. The ne- gro was at work repairing transform CT attached to the pole, when he met thousand three hundred volts of electric- tty passed through his body.
 The negro had strapped himself to the while at work and when he was killed his body was suspended from the pole, and the sight of the dead man dangling in mid-air attracted crowd of several hundred persons
 On this same pole and at the same hour few days ago, another negro lineman was killed in similar manner, The negro who was killed yesterday was the first man to reach the electrocuted workman. and he assisted in bearing the body to the ground. Yesterday he met death at the same place and hour and in the same manner as his comrade did d few days before.
 Attached to the pole where the trag- edy occurred is transformer which is used in reducing the voltage of electric ity from the primary wire to the sec- ondary wire, which furnished lights for stores and residences. Tnis transformer reduces the voltage from 2,S00 to i13 volts.
 Saturday night the fuse box in the transformer burned out At the time 1t looked as though the box was splitting fire as the sparks of electricity fitted here and there about the transformer and attracted attention on the streets
 Yesterday morning Jim Perry, a negro lineman. was sent up on the pole to re-
 The officials of the Montgomery Light Company. including the Electrical En' gineer of the construction force, when seen yesterday and asked about the af- fair, gave the following version of how the accident occurred. The officials say that there is no more danger at tha; pole than any. other in the city, and with more wires. They say that the | dead negro had put in new fuse box
 and had connected the primary wire tc 1 joints and then came down. few min
 utes later Perry again climbed the pole | to put some insulation with tape on the
 his work and evidently had gotten his
 nanc on the primary wire and put his | foot on the ground wire for the light | ming arrester
 The Light Company people say tha | Perry had been working for them in th' l capacity of lineman for three months anC | had come to them with recommendation
 as good workman of experience. Whil' | they regret the affair they attribute tn l accident to carelessness on the part O | the negro. When he met death Perry wa | facing the east a band of music whicl
 headed the Labor Day parade had stop | ped in front of Dorsett's Hall and tn Light Company people think that Perry | attention had been attracted to the ban'
 and while thus engaged he came in con | tact with the wires.
 The tragedy was discovered in fev
 seconds and the negros fellow workmel l ran to him to render assistance. A tele | phone message brought out the Hook an, l Ladder Company and a short ladder wa | run up on the porch at the corner wher
 the pole is located. A negro then climb
 ed the pole and placed a rope about tn
 dead mans waist and threw the end oNe | a beam and he was thus lowered to tn
 shed and thence to the ground Tw | physicians were in waiting and they pro | nounced the man dead. On an order iron the Light Company the body was re
 moved to an undertaking establishment 1 and later to the negros late residence near the gas works.
 Coroner Tice viewed the remains. H
 did not hold an inquest. The Coroner wa of the opinion that the deceased came t his death by an electrical shock the re
 suit of an accident.
 The body was not disfgured. A smal 1 spot was on his right hand and anothe | on his right foot. the places where the! came in contact with the wires.