The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-05-10


lacerated spot where the guard had rolled
him along the cobble stones. On the
right leg. just below the knee was another
place torn and bleeding, caused by the
rolling Aside from this and a few
scratches on the head and hands, there
are no marks to show how Mr. McClaf-
ferty carae TO his death. He was washed
at the city building and did not present
nearly so dreadful an appearance as he
did when laying en- the pavement beside
the car that killed him. The body was
removed from the city building to Gill's
undertaking rooms and prepared for
burial
The death of Mr. McClanerty was pure
ly accidental and due to his deafness.
During his service in the army his hear
ing was impaired and for a number of
years he has been totally deaf He drew
pension on account of his disability and
DR.. Hoffman but couple of weeks ago
examined him for an increase. He could
not have heard the car and did not look
either way to see if one was approaching.
Nearly every witness Of the accident
stated that when the car was just across
the street he turned his back toward il
an dwallzed along beside the rail for
number CT feet.
The motorneer, Roscoe Lowe, could
hardly be blamed for the accident. Those
who saw it say that he was running very
slow and was applying the brakes to stop
the car at the usual stopping place on the
east crossing when the aged man stepped
directly in front of the car and but four
or five feet away. He stopped working
the brake and threw on the reverse lever
TO stop the car quicker and to prevent
striking the man. The front of the car
was not more than eight feet from the
spot where Mr.. McClafferty lay when he
stopped.
Mr.. F. G.. Symthe was standing on the
sidewalk on the north side OF Douglas
avenue when the accident occurred. To
the Eagle he said:
Il saw the car coming and looking up
and down the street saw this man start
diagonally across the street as If coming
toward our store. 1t seemed TO me as if
he was twenty or thirty feet east of the
crossing when he started north. There
was no one with him. He was going in
a northeasterly direction. walking slowly
and deliberately. He did not look up the
track TO Sc if there was a car coming.
Just as the car was passing over Law
renee avenue he turned almost directly
east and then stepped on to the track
with the car less than eight feet away.
1 saw the car strike him. He fell back
ward and toward the east and it seemed
from where I was standing as if almost
under the car.
-''As l saw him coming across the street
I watched the car approach and noticed
the motorneer applying his brakes as if
to stop for him to get on. The car was
moving very slowly and after striking
the man did not go more than five or six
feet. The motoreer did his best to stop
the car to avoid hitting the old man
Mr.. Symthe's statement was corrobor-
ated yesterday by half dozen persons
who saw the accident. Persons on the
car and those on the sidewalk who were
watching say that the car was moving
very slowly and the motorneer had it
under perfect control and would nave
stopped at the proper place for passengers
TO get flor on the car. Those who watch
ed the motorneer stated that when Mr..
McClafferty stepped across the rail the
motorneer threw his reverse lever.
Roscoe y. Lowe. the motorneer, made
the following statement to the Eagle last
night:
81 left the corner of Main street and
Douglas avenue at 2:3o, five minutes be-
hind time. had pretty heavy load and
the streets were crowded. At Market
street 1 stopped to let a woman off and
then turned on half-current. The street
between Market and Lawrence was
crowded with rigs turning in and out.
crossing and recrossing the track, and 1
had to run slow to avoid a smash-up.
When about in front of Hunters meat
market, in the middle of the block, 1
closed the current entirely and was let
ting the car drift along. l had not been
going fast at any time and of course was
on the cars momentum to
carry me along until / got out of the
jam in the street. I was running in such
shape that I could stop the car in very
few feet. The street had been recently
sprinkled and the brake was wet, and
this handicapped me slightly in the con-
troll of the car. Just as l reached Law
renee avenue and glanced over the
street to see if there were any passengers
I saw this man walking out to
the track. l had often hauled him from
the West Side over TO town and. knew
him as passenger well and had talked
with him some. He walked out to the
track and stopped and thought he was
gonig to get on, so began working the