The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1904-07-10
RUN DOWN BY A CAR
AGED NEGRESS CRUSHED ~
DEATH UNDER WHEELS'
Henrietta Shelton Struck by Caf VI
Pickett SprlISys Line Near
Slaughter House and was
Killed Instantly.

Henrietta Shelton, an aged negro
woman, was ground to death oehea'h
the wheels of a car of the MontgoH
ery Traction Company on the Plcke'.
Springs line about 100 yards above the
slaughter house switch shortiy peioie
s o'clock last night.
The car was in charge of Conductor
Cox and its motorman was Motorman
Partin. They claim that the death or
the woman was due solely to her negn-
eence. On the other hand the negroes
of the settlement, bordering on the
Traction Company line at the point
| Of the killing, aver that If the motor
man had been attending strictly to MS
duty, the tragedy would not have oc-
CURED.
Car No. of the Traction Company
| was returning to Montgomery from
| Pickett Springs, where 1t had taken
large crowd of pleasure seekers.
| Where the tragedy occurred the track
| Is absolutely level but is just beneath
| a steep grade and the car was rum
ming at considerable speed, at the time
| of the accident On either side OF the
track are steep entertainments. The aged
negress. enfeebled and deaf, climbed
| the embankment on TIL left side, In
tending to cross the track. Just as she
| reached the track, the car with Its
twenty yards from her. According to
the statement of the street car officials
the woman had ample time to cross
the track, and the motorman merely
| rang his gong to make sure she was
Il aware of the approach of the car.
When the woman reached the outside
rail- she slipped and fell across the
track The motorman endeavored to
stop the car. but the effort came too
late.
The wheels of the car passed over
the body of the old negress and left
her a misshapen mass in the center
of the track. The car was immediate
ly stopped and the body was not
dragged.
The motorman and conductor quick
ly notified. Maj. e. E. Winters. general
manager of the Traction Company anc
he In turn notified Coroner w. II. Tice
Being interviewed, Major Winters
said, The motorman was unable to see
the woman until she reached the tor
! of the embankment and at that time
she had plenty of opportunity to cross
the track. When she fell. he was una
BILE to stop the car in time and the
unfortunate accident occurred. From
what 1 can learn the woman was old
feeble and perhaps slightly mentally
unbalanA,d and 1 expect her fall was
due to fright"
Neither the motorman nor conduc-
tor were arrested. The tragedy oc-
Cured just outside the city limits and
was not Investigated by the police au-
thorities. At a late hour last night, nc
warrant had been turned over to the
sheriff of Montgomery county.
At the scene of the tragedy, the ne
groes were all excitement A group OF
four houses are in line along the
tracks in a hollow. On the top of the
embankment in easy sight of the pas
sengers on the cars to the pleasure
resort lay the mangled body of the ne
gress utterly unrecognizable. Groups
of excited negroes fitted to and fro
with dim oil lamps. talking in sub
dued and angered tones. The tragedy
seemed to have more than the usual
effect on them. Eery negro seemed
to think that the killing of the wo.
man. was directly due to her race and
all said that the motorman had plenty
of opportunity to stop his car
Coroner Tice notified a negro under
taker of the tragedy and requested him
to take charge of the body. He held
no inquest.
Henrietta Shelton was 80 years old
She had a single son with whom she
lived in a two room house by the side
of the iron rails or which she died.