The San Francisco call., 1907-01-26

with a swapping SOuhu thht was ns
If a bralkerod had given way, cal
of the Fillmore and Broadway hns
went laundering down Fillmore street
hill at $3.50 o'clock Thursday night. II
started from Page street for Haight
and so rapidly did 1T approach Hatghi
! street that Thomas J. Duhey, living Al
52S Waller street, who was crossing
Haigbt at Fillmore, was struck py tht
runaway and hurled across the street
with great force, his head striking the
curbstone. He was probably fatally
injured. as his leg was broken and
he Is suffering from conclusion of the
brain.
Like the wind the car sped toward
Waller, crossed that street with a roar
and continued on toward Duboce ave-
nue., at which point the track turns
in for a block on the run TO Church
street. Luckily the emergency brakes
held before the curve was reached and
a disaster that might have cost a score
or more of lives was averted. Ii was
the narrowest sort of a narrow escape.
for the car was Icaded to the sidebsrs
and there must have been $50 persons
on board.
While the car was making Its flight,
women screamed for help and the men
on the car with difficulty kept them
from jumping off. Persons on the
street ran toward the foot OF the hill
expecting that a terrible accident was
about to occur when the heavy car
struck the curve.
Duffey was picked up by bystanders
and taken to the Sun Drug Store on
Haight street, where he was given
temporary aid until the arrival of DR..
Kugler, who had him removed 10 his
home Inspectors for the claims de-
partment visited the old man and tried
to get a statement from him. but he
was too weak to tell his story.
CAR STARTS SUDDENLY
Duffey. according to eye witnesses
of the runaway. was not more than
ten feet from the track when the car
stood at the top OF the hill one block
away. The old man walked quite
briskly over the crossing and just then
the car came down as If It had been
dropped out of the sky. Duffey was
sent hurting through the air and
against the curb while In the frac
tional part of a minute the runaway
had travelled two blocks and come to
halt at Duboce avenue
Henry Marvin. a carpenter who lives
in Berkeley. was thrown from a Castro
street car at Market and East streets,
yesterday afternoon and cut over the
eye His hurt was not serious.
There was much trouble on the
Sutter-street line during the late hours
of the afternoon owing to blockades
and wire troubles. At Fillmore street
nearly 500 persons awaited the arrival
of the eastbound cars and at o'clock
no car had passed the crossing for
fifteen minutes When one finally came
there was almost a riot among those
who endeavored to board IT. The car
was crowded with passengers, who
tried to leave at Fillmore street, and
for some minutes were unable TO do so
on account of the mad scramble to get
on by the crowd on the street. Two
policemen finally Strengthened out the
tangle.
The next Sutter- street car was in
hurry to make the schedule and ran
away from Fillmore street before all
of the passengers had boarded ii. A
woman clung to the handle bars as the
car rolled swiftly up the street, and 1t
was with difficulty that men on the
platform held her until she could be
dragged to a place of safety.
Since last May fourteen persons have
been killed and ia severely injured in
street-car accidents in this city. There
were probably about 200 persons in
jured in minor accidents of which no
public report has been made as the
records of private hospitals and the
Central Emergency Hospital show that
many persons were treated for minor
injuries received in car accidents of
which no particular report was con-
sidered necessary.