The Tucumcari news. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1905-1907, 1906-08-11
BEFORE THE CRASH
SENSATIONS OF OCCUPANT OF
RUNAWAY AUTOMOBILE.
Sense of Personal Injury Secondary
to That Of Control of Machine
Terrific Transit
Checked.

I'm reading of the many automobile
accidents | used to wonder what were
the sensations of the occupants Of a
machine just before the crash, assum,
ing that they lived to relate their feel
iDgs," remarked a well.known Wash.
~inStonian whose new electric auto has
been his delight and the admiration
of his friends, says the Star.
Il now know; my machine is In the
shop, which is usually the first pleas.
ant experience a new owner has with
his car, but luckily for me | am not
in the hospital, though 1t came very
near being No. 23 with me. While
coming down n hill in the outskirts
OF the city a few evenings since APP.
piled the brake to slow up. When
say | applied the brake | mean that I
followed the instructions in applying
the brake. | knew hat there was a
brake on the machine. OF course,
for | used It, and since the machine
didn't respond my first thought was
that the brake had gone of visiting
some other brake on the night before
and had unkindly forgotten to return
home. AS the car gathered mo-
mentum going down the incline, and
the wheels began to spin around like
buzz-saws working overtime on a rush
order, | realized hat the brake had
sulked and refused to do duty. The
next thought which chased through
my mind was to keep the car in the
center Of the road, provided the steer
ing gear didn't 20 on a strike for
more wages and less hours Of labor.
The next sensation was a realization
that the steering gear would hold to
it's job and not be led astray by the
sulky actions of the recalcitrant
brake. In that neeting second OF time
this sensation was positive and dis
tinct. and | noted instantly an IN.
SEPARATION Of confidence on my part.
Down at the foot of the hill was a
telegraph pole about a mile high, the
cement abutments OF a bridge which
looked as big as the treasury building.
a road that seemed to turn off at a
sharp right angle. and a large touring
auto on the level stretch of the main
road that appeared like a huge battle
ship getting into action to ram. Not
being yet hardened to auto accidents,
and their pleasing incidents, I won.
dered If | could perform the acrobat.
ic feat OF hitting all the distractions
In succession and putting them II Of
business seriatim, or whether | would
do the flying trapeze leap for life.
skip owe them in turn, and succeed
In getting around that right angle
corner which was becoming sharper
with every second of my flight.
II never thought that anything on
wheels could go down an inclined
plane like that car of mine and not
70 up in spontaneous combustion from
the heat of friction. My next realiza-
ton was that ! had reached the bot
tom of the hill; that the sharp right
angle developed into an easy turn, and
that the wheels had held true and not
'skiddesi.' My machine butted it's
nose into an accommodating embank.
ment without half the damage I ex.
pccted, and | escaped personal injury.
From the start to the finish of that
celebrating and happily not injurious
ride | did not have that terrible sense
of impending personal injury with its
possibility OF broken bones or loss
Of life which II would think is a
preliminary in such instances; my
mind was entirely on the car and its
control, the sense of personal injury
was secondary. ! should say. from
my eXperienc that auto accidents
come with such terrific ~suddenness,
a. would have been the case with me
had my wheels 'skidded' and the ma
chine overturned, that the occupants
are either spilled out or are killed
almost before the mind can form q
realization OF what Is happening"