The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-03-05
DEATHATG GRADE ROSSlNG
WILLIAM SPRINGER KILLED AT
MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE.
Express or Street Car Caused
Death-MOtorman's story.

The body of William Springer, fifty-five
years old, who lived at Pope and Oriental
streets, was found lying underneath an
East Tenth-street car at Ills o'clock last
night, badly mashed and mangled from
being dragged for some distance by the
street car. The body was picked up and
taken i'm the ambulance to the city morgue
where it was dressed by Coroner Tute-
wiler and prepared for burial by an under
taker. While lying in the morgue the body
was identified as Springer, and later in the
evening his family called and arranged for
its disposition. Springer is survived by a
wife and two children, and was returning
to his home when killed.
The question as to what caused Spinger's
death is perplexing. He was found fas-
tened underneath an East Tenth-street car
No. 424-after the Knickerbocker express,
an east-bound fast train for New York of
the Big Four road, which was forty min
utes late. had passed Massachusetts ave-
nue. and Tenth street, shortly after Z
o'clock According to the story of the
motorman, James Owens, of 1913 West
Twenty-seventh street, he saw the body
lying the street-car track after his car
had cleared the railroad tracks, but could
not avoid running over it.
Owens says the body was lying directly
in the path of his car, and that he had to
cross it in order to clear his car of
the railroad tracks, over which trains were
running constantly. He says that he saw
an approaching freight train, and that, TO
get his car safely over the track II was
necessary for him to bring he car out of
danger. Owens says the body-he did not
discover until after the car was stopped
that it was a body-was lying across the
street-car tracks, and had undoubtedly
been thrown there by the Knckerbocker
train. which had passed Tenth street short
ly before.
Glenn Marsh, of 24O6 North Illinois street,
conductor of the street car, had run Tor
ward to warn the motorman of the APP
proach of trains to the crossing and did not
see Springer Marsh says he waited until
the Knickerbocker had passed over the
crossing and then signaled his car to come
ahead When the car passed him he jumped
aboard, and from the rear platform gave
the signal to go ahead. He got off again
when the rumblng underneath the car and
the sudden stop suggested TO him tnat
something was wrong
RESPONSIBILITY NOT LOCATED.
Opinions differ as to the responsibility
for Springer's death. The body was man.
gled badly. The trunk was bruised consid-.
erably and all of the ribs broken, the neck
dislocated and the collar bone splintered.
L
the street car passed over them, and his
body was torn by it's treatment. The lower
limbs were mashed and had been crossed
by the wheels of the street car. No marks
other than a cut on the nose and a bruise
on the forehead showed that the body had
been knocked any distance.
When the body was taken from beneath
the street car IL was more than nifty feet
from the railroad crossing, and had been
carried several feet by the street car. The
theory was advanced that the steam rail-
road train in passing had run into Spring
er, who was crossing the tracks, and
knocked him down, while the street car,
after crossing the first tracks, had run
over ii as it lay in the cars path and car
ried ii to where ii was found. William r.
Norris, a night Waterman at the venee r
plant at Massachusetts avenue and Tenth
street, helped lift the body from the track.
He said he did not know what had killed
the man and did not have an opinion as
Ito whether the street car or railroad train
after examining the body at the city
morgue and talking to several of the w.t.
nesses, said he believed that the Knicker-
booker train had hit Springer.
Complaint Is made or the lighting facil-
tiles in the northeast end OF town last
night. Fully l50 lights in the neighborhood
east of College avenue and Noble street
were out last night because of accident
to the machinery in the power house of the
There was light at the Massachusetts
avenue crossing. The officials of the power
company reported the trouble as being
caused by the breaking of clutches on the
dynamoS which supply the northeast end
or town with power for the lights.