The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-07-12
BOYS MAKE FLYING LEAPS.
Officials Complain Of the Way They
Act on Tybee Trains.

Omctais tom plain CT the Way They
Act on Fybee Trains.
Officials of the Central Railway are
complaining about young boys on Ty-
bee Island, who endanger their lives
and their limbs by jumping on and off
the passenger trains while they are in
motion. Time and time again this has
been noted. and the officials have de-
cided that some means must be taken
to prevent the practice.
An appeal has been made to the
parents in some cases. Parents recog-
nize the danger their boys run in this
practice, and they usually resort to a
very effective means of putting a stop
to it,
On an afternoon train, coming to
Savannah from Tybee, a day or two
ago, small boy jumped aboard at
Point Station to impress his juvenile
companions, and when he attempted
to get off, after the train had started.
his clothing caught in the handrail
on the train platform and the boy
was in imminent danger of his life
He had already lifted one foot to step
off on the ground when his progress
was arrested, and only the prompt
work of the train hands and the i'm
p
brakes saved the childs life. AS soon
as the train was brought to a stand
still the little fellow ran away with
his companions and his name could
not be learned.
At every station between Savannah
and Tybee small boys have formed the
habit of congregating to wait for
trains and steal rides. The boys jump
aboard the cars without regard to risk
of fa Ifv,,I, t., 49,
of Thursday afternoon many of the
little fellows have had narrow escapes
from death.
Some of the boys, more daring than
their associates, win hang on to car
platform until the train has reached
high rate of speed before they jump
off. The practice is exceedingly dan
gerous, and in some cases the chill
drens lives have been saved only
through their good fortune.
I'VE are at our wits ends to stop
this" said an official of the Central,
and unless the parents of the boys
can be brought to realize the serious
ness of this matter it is probably only
a question of time when some child
viii be killed, or MANNED for life. 1t is
impossible for the company to have
guards placed on each car of the long
Tybee trains to keep the boys off We
already have large train crews. The
boys, with spirit of bravado, to i'm
tress their companions with their
bravery and daring, often run risks
which make their lives worth not a
moments purchase. Some hair-breadth
escapes have already been reported by
the train hands and we are very anx-
ious to stop the practice
The boys board a train when it
stops at station and walk through
the cars as if they were going to ride.
Sometimes they walk up to the ice
water cooler and take a drink and
then they walk through the train. The
less daring make it point to hop off
Immediately after the train has started
and the others wait until the train has
gotten started. The danger is obvious.
In many instances grown persons have
been seriously injured by stepping off a
street car while it was in motion, so
you can readily see that when a small
boy jumps from railroad train when
1t is in motion the consequences are
often likely to prove fatal
We have done everything to stop
this nuisance, but So far we have NOT
been successful. We do not want to
have the boys arrested, but something
must certainly be done.
If serious accident should hammer.
directly caused by the recklessness of
THESE boys, the railroad company would
undoubtedly come in for a large share
OF criticism. But what can we do9
The parents of the juvenile offenders
should make some effort to protect
their children from this danger. We
appeal to the Morning News to help
US in this matter, as we think that pub
licity is about the only thing that will
remedy the nuisance and bring the
parents of the boys to a realization
that unless they keep closer watch
over their children some places in the
homestead are liable to be made va
cant and some of the children if they.
escape with their lives will be hope
less cripples'