The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1907-08-28
BADLY BURNED.
A Mother And Her Little Son
Horribly Injured by
live ELECTRIC WIRE.

WITS. hauOc LauSniln and der Nine.
Year-Old Boy Fearfully and Per.
haps Fatally Injured-Mother was
Seeking to Rescue Her Child who
Had Caught Hold of a Live Elec.
trio Wire.
A dispatch from Florence to The
News and Courier says Mrs. Maude
Laughlin, wife and child of Mr.. Geo.
W. Laughlin, of Florence, came very
near being instantly killed on Cheev-
es street, about 9 o'clock Monday
morning by live electric wire of the
Florence Light and Power Company.
Both mother and son were horribly
burned about the hands, limbs and
feet, and it is very doubtful if either
of them will survive the terrible or
deal that they passed through. Should
they survive they will be horribly
disfgured for life, for it will be nee
essary to amputate the right hand
of little Lawrence, and Mrs. Laughlin
will lose her right hand and her right
foot.
The Laughlins live in pretty lit
tie cottage which they have recently
bought at the northwest corner Of
Ravene1 and Cheeves streets. Mon
day morning little Lawrence noticed
that one of the wires that conveys
the main current to the arc light on
the corner in front of the Laughlin
home was rubbing against the body
of tree on the streets. Every time
sizzle and smoke.
About 9 o'clock he was in the
street playing, and saw the wire
break. Not knowing there was any
danger, he hurriedly ran and picked
up one end os it. AS soon as he
touched it the main current passed
through his body to the wet ground
upon which he was standing, and a
second later he was knocked pros
trate upon the ground.
The little fellow gave scream that
attracted the neighbors. Mrs. Laugh
lin also heard the scream and has
tened from her bed room to the piaz-
"a. AS she looked out the front
door she saw her only son PROSTATE
upon the ground, smoke and flame is
suing from his body and limbs and
writhing in agony. She did not stop
to think or to go down the step, but
leaped from the piazza and ran to
save her child's life.
Reaching the boy she caught hold
of the wire with her hand, and
second later she, too, was prostrate
upon the ground, with fire and smoke
issuing from her limbs and body, and
both her and her child holding fast
to the wire, which neither could nor
had presence of mind to let go.
In this condition both lay there
until Mrs. C. B. Ham, neighbor,
seeing their plight, and knowing the
danger, secured a piece of board and
pushed the wire beyond their reach,
though it would jump back and
forth as it swung down from the
cross arm of a pole nearby. Every
time the wire would move back and
forth it would touch what then look
ed to be the lifeless form OF Mrs.
Laughlin and her son.
About this time Mr.. S. T. Burch,
Jr., who was passing in his buggy,
and others, ran up and by means
of sticks and boards managed to re-
move the wire far enough away SO as
to take the bodies of the two people
from the ground to their home
Physicians were hastily summoned,
but in the meantime neighbors, who
had gathered, went quickly to work
to resuscitate the two, who were
then given up as dead. After nard
work both of them began to show
signs of life and by this time several
physicians had arrived and continued
the work of resuscitation until both
mother and son regained conscious
ness.
The little boys right hand is burn
ed to a crisp, every sineW being burn
ed and the flesh burned deep into the
bone. He is badly burned on the
thighs. legs, back and shoulders; and
il will be necessary to amputate the
right hand above the wrist. Two OF
the fingers, it is said, were burned
completely off.
Mrs. Laughlin is burned in the
hand. on the arm, shoulder and an
kIe. Her shoe was burned from hsI
foot. The right hand and foot Will
be amputated. Mr.. Laughlln IS an
engineer on the Florence and Char-
lesion run on the Atlantic Coast Line
and he, Mrs. Laughlin and their son
are well known in Florence, where
they are highly esteemed and are
very popular. uo.
Mrs. Lauglin was Miss Maude MOT
ris, daughter of the late w. ba11ei
Morris, and was married TO MI:
Laushlin about eleven years ago a.
Florence. Lawrence, the little !e!-
low, is the only child born 10 .nis
union, and both father ano motnel
are devoted to him. He is wen Ano"n
and is a manly little 1elio" anu %
a very attractive child. -.
The electric light people claim tnat
the storm early Monday morning naa
damaged the wires considerably ana
that after daylight they sent ou!
1;neman to look after all lines, durlns
which time the plant was smut o9"ni .,i
Ac soon as the lineman reporte9 ati
0. O. K. power was again turned 4sa 1,;ra 1a
and an i it was after this that the the WIRE
ar nsrted d and fell in Cheeves street.
paatso pTso T FIorence Light and Power
cnonv lr has been severly censured
Son,p seon11se of the condition of their
wiTes uiIe poles and plant. The Light
connany is not alone in being cen
smred for numbers and numbers Of
neonle are placing the blame directly
mon tn city council for allowing the
poles to remain up in the condition
they are in.