The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-10-01
FIGURES ARE WRONG.
Coroner Smith Says Stories of Voter
ans Deaths Are False.

According to Coroner Smith Of Leav-
enworth county, Department Command
er P. H. Coney is way off on his figures
about the. killing of inmates of the Sol
diers' home by the steam and electric
cars
The Leavenworth Times says in
speaking Of the State Journals inter
view with Commander Coney:
The clipping from the State Journal
was shown to Coroner Smith yesterday
and he could hardly believe that Com
mander Coney had been SO grossly mis-
informed regarding the number of vet
Grams killed.
MY records show" said the coroner,
that since January t. 1904, twenty
months, but four inmates OF the Home
have been killed by railway cars, and
all of them were thoroughly inveStigat-
ed by corOner's juries. One man killed,
was an old soldier but not a member
Of the Home.
''On January 16, 1904, Peter Basey, a
member OF the Home. was killed at
Second and ChOctaW streets and was
not seen by Ihe train crew.
1.-The next veteran to be killed was
Charles Mcdonald. a member of the
Home He was killed by a Burlington
train at Third and Choctaw streets.
IF. NJ Heilman was the next killed,
on August 80, by a Missouri Pacific
train near the Riverside mine dump.
He was seen by two coal miners on the
railway track, but the crew of the train
claimed they did not see him.
veteran Geary was killed at Stony
Point, near where Holman was killed
This was on September IA. The train
crew stated that they saw Geary on
the track and that he made a move
as if to step off, but then walked back
He was deaf, according to a physicians
testimony, and did not hear the train.
1.-The last one killed was William
Carey, on September II. He was struck
by a K. CIV. car on South Fourth
street He was lying in the ceEeer of
the track with his coat over his head
and was not noticed until too late.
In Geary's case the foreman of the
jury, o. J. TwogOod, was an old soldier
and 1 am sure, had he had any doubt
as to the manner Of death. he would
not have written in the verdict: Came
to his death by his own neglect
'All of these cases were thoroughly
investigated and as much testimony
given as could have been obtained for
a trial in the district court. The
Jurors viewed the bodies and scene of
the killings and weighed all of the
testimony.
IF any coroner's jury, after hearing
evidence, decides that a veteran is kill
ed by neglect Of a railways employees;
if it finds it negligence OrfeloniOus is
sue a cOroner's warrant The law calls
upon ma to DO so. ! am sorry Com
mander COHey has been misinformed
thorough investigations viii be made
in all cases in the future. as have been
made heretofore. and that i any vet
eran is killed and the evidence does
not prove conclusively that it was pure
ly an accident a warrant will be is
sued.
members of the Soldiers home have
said time and again that those men who
are on the dump leave the grounds by
getting on the Missouri Pacific tracks
and come to Leavenworth that way be-
cause there are no guards along the
east or river side of the Home grounds.
They feel that the only way these men
could be kept in would be by fencing
the grounds on that side.
Railway engineers, testifying at cor
oner's inquests have said that repeated
" they have had veterans walk along
the tracks and in front of their trains.
and that the men would step out of
the way Just in time to prevent being
hit One veteran, after doing this call
ed TO an engineer: You didn't get me
that time -