The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-09-09
TRAM VERSUS ELECTRIC CAR.

Modern and ancient methods of trans
portation have come together with dis
astrous results to the latter. The first
accident of serious character with the
electric cars has occurred and that.
there was not a fatal termination must
be attributed TO good fortune as much
as anything else The tram car which
was overturned was clearly the tres
passer and attention is called thus early
to the menace which lies in the put
ting into the hands Of incompetents
the, lives of travellers.
With the gong sounding the electric
car approached the crossing. A police
man on the curb held up his finger to
stop the tram ear. But the Portuguese
driver would not be denied. For years
the trans have owned the streets. On
the narrow thoroughfares they have
worked their will With mules at gal
lop the bobtails have terrorized foot
and carriage passengers alike. 1t has
seemed the delight of the car drivers to
make a dash for the narrowest portion
of a street, when carriage driven by
a woman was approaching, and thus
brighten the driver Of the private vc..-
Gle, whose right 10 the street iSa UNI
questioned by any one else than tram
driver.
Small wonder then that PAINS protege
should pay no heed to the gong of the
oncoming car or the warning signal of
the policeman. He had been trained
to rule the road and of course could not
understand that anything would dare
to dispute the right of way with him
and his rapidly rolling rabbit-hutches.
Such an exhibition of carelessness
would be sufficient for the arrest and
prosecution of the driver, and the claim
of Pain, that his man had the car on
the track of the Rapid Transit company
before he was aware of the presence
of the electric car. is a confession of
the incompetence of his driver. Every
one who has had to ride upon the cars
of the tramways in the past has had
occasion to aaow that the average driv-.
er was blind and deaf when the car
was in motion and would-be passen-
ger was not exactly upon the line of
tracks TO give signal for stopping.
Usually this was attributed to the
greater desire of the Portuguese lad,
who was intrusted with the vehicle, to
gossip with a platform rider or to
smoke a cigarette, than to attend to
his business, but now by the confession
of the manager of the line the people
find that they are compelled to trust
themselves to the custody of a man
who cannot hear or see for the per-
sons on the car aver that they heard
the gong long before the corner was
reached
~ Ia a orsa q
was due to the fact that the electric
car was going at a slow rate of speed
The motor man had it under control
and of course had no other thought but
that the mules would be pulled up, as
he had the right of way. AS soon as
the driver of the tram began to urge
his animals the brakes were set upon
the heavy car and 1T was almost stopped
when 1t struck the tram. Had it been
under Roadway there would have been
another story, for the smaller car would
have been ground to bits.
The lesson then is that the trans
must be driven by men who know
enough to understand that a sounding
gong means that the electric car is
approaching the crossing. There will
be, probably. a suit to fix the RESPONSE
bility, so that the damage suits which
may follow may be directed against the
Z corporation whose servant showed
culpable negligence. To one who was
near when the accident happened, or
who reached the scene before the crowd
had dispersed, there is no question
Everyone said that the gong sounded
and that the driver of the tram made
no effort to control his mules. He was
as obstinate as one of them The ques-
ton is one for the evidence and If 1t is
the same in court as it was on the
street there can be no doubt of the re-
suit.