The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-06-26
WOMAN KILLED
BY FALLING POLE
CRUMBLED WITHOUT WARNING
MISS MAMIE c. BELL WAS KILLED
NEAR CHRIST CHURCH.


Brought by street Railway Com
pany to Take Place of the one
That Had KILLED -he Woman De-
fore the Body Was Taken iH
CharGes-No Inquest Held.
A pole SO rotten AZ ats base thar n
fen of its own weight, struck ana in
stantly killed Miss Mamie c. Bell
aged Sc years. Of No. So Liberty street,
west. al 81. Julian and Buu streets,
within the shadow OF Christ Church.
yesterday afternoon.
The pole supported the prop
erty Of the Savannah Elec-
trio Company trolley wires. Miss
Bell was crossing the tracks Of the
company when she pole. without warn
ing. fell and crushed her skull Il was
the opinion OF the physicians who eX-
ennined her irnnaediately afterwards
that she did not know what mt her.
There were several eye witnesses 70
the tragedy. A warning was shouted
70 MSS Bell as the pole cracked, but
she was facing the other way and did
ror know she was IN any danger. Her
skull was fractured and rhe blood
poured from her eyes. ears. nose ard
Enoufh
Died BY side Of Church.
she was picked up and carried TO the
lirtle grass plat on the north side Of
Christ Church. Dr.. J. \ Gibson and
Or. George Nj Norton arrived early
on the scene but the woman was be
yond al human and. she died within
few minutes
M Harvey Hamilton, an eye wit
-ess ssld he heard the pole crack
just IS II began TO fall. he shouted
20 Mss Bel. but she evident
y ID lot understand that she was in
any danger she was crossing from
the square 6iaEonslly across St Julian
street towards the Southern Bank
building and did not turn. The pole
which fell was on the church corner
on the opposite side Of the street.
There were several other eye witnesses.
among them Mr.. J. NJ. Broderick. and
Ben. Simmons, colored.
As soon as the pole fell. crowd be-
gan to gather and in a few minutes
the street was crowded, and it was
with difficulty that the police kept the
curious people back. A telephone
message was sent from the Southern
Bank for the police ambulance almost
Immediately after the accident, but
the woman was dead before the am
bulance reached the scene. A cloth
was spread over the body and 1t was
left in the sun beside the church
would Hold No Inquest.
Justice Naughtin, the acting coroner,
arrived about half an hour after the
accident. He found that there had
been eye witnesses to the accident, and
decided to hold no inquest. For over
an hour the body lay in the
sun. where the woman had died. I'm
dertaker w. T. Dixon was finally tele-
phoned, and the body was carried to
his place. A new pole, to take the
place of the rotten one was taken to
the scene before the body was taken
away.
From the time of the accident until
the body was finally removed, hundreds
of persons, most of them from morbid
curiosity, crowded about the remains.
There was some difficulty at first in
establishing the identity of the VIC
tim.
Several girls from the Pants" factory
of l.. Mohr & Son, where Miss Bell
was employed. were the first to posi-
lively identify her. 1t was then
thought she had no relatives in the
city. A message was sent to her
boarding house, No. 1922 Liberty street.
west and there it was learned she had
a brother, ]. H. Bell, who lives at
No. 513 York street. west.
Mother in Bryan County.
Besides the Savannah brother, Miss
Bell leaves a mother and two sisters
Mrs. Mary Bell. the mo Their, an6 Mrs
Philip Braid, a married sister, live in
Bryan county, near Ellabelle. Miss
Emily Bell, the second sister, resides in
Atlanta.
The body was removed last night
from Mr.. Dixon's undertaking estab-
lishment to the home of the brother on
York street. This morning at o'clock
the remains will be carried to Ella
belle where the funeral will be he'd
this afternoon. Miss Bell had resided
in Savannah for six years.
Many in the crowd before the body
was moved, noticed ring on the we'd
ding finger of the dead woman, and il
was supposed before her identity was
established that she was married An
other band ring attracted some atten-
tion.
1t was learned last night that Miss
Bell had recently spoken of getting
married. Mrs. ]. H. Bell. a sister-in-
law, said she did not know whether
Miss Bell intended to marry or not.
She had frequently spoken OF It, and
the band ring was a present from the
man she said she was going to marry
He gave it to her last Christmas.
Had New Guard Wires.
New guard wires from the pole to the
trolley wire at the curve had been
strung in the morning, and at that
time the workmen did not notice the
condition of the trolley pole. The new
wires were drawn tight, and when the
pole fell ii was in the direction of
the trolley wire, to which it was join
ed by the guard wires.
There was not a car within two
blocks of the corner when the pole fell,
and it was no unusual jar or strain
that caused IL to collapse. Its condi-
ton after IL fell attracted great deal
Of attention, and left no doubt in the
minds Of the hundreds that inspected
II as TO the cause of the fatal accident
The decayed wood was scattered
around the base of the pole and TO
those who inspected it, before the
street railway people could remove IL,
and put up new pole, the only won
der was that ii had not fallen sooner.
No o1hcihI investigation.
Although II was stated that the com
af