Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-09-18

disaster A Gordon of soldiers. however
kept the crowd at a safe distance.
After a surgical examination it was an.
nounced at the hospital that Lieut. Self
ridge was in a critical condition, having
suffered "a fracture at the base of the
skull 1t was said then that Wr ght was
not severely injured.
At TAO O'Clock Maj. Crosby. Maj. Nc
Cav. Maj Ireland and Capt. Bailey. the
army surgeons attending tie INJURED
men. gave out the following statement:
, Mr. Wright has fractures Of the left
thigh and several RIBS on the right side.
well.
Lieut.. selfridge received a fracture OF
| the base of the skull. His condition is
extremely or. teal"
opinion that Lieut.. Seifrfdge probably
would die within a short time. This opin-
ion was soon confirmed.
/ Wright's Bones Set.
Wright's leg was set by DR. L. L. Wat
tiers OF New York and Surgeon Bailey of
the army. They also set two ribs.
Both of the injured men sustained Sc
we're scalp wounds in addition to their
other injuries. The surgeons took Lieut..
Selfridge to the operating rooms and re-
moved the part of the broken skull over
the left eye. which was causing convul-
sions
Lieut. Selfridge died at $40 O'Clock last
evening. He had not regained conscious
ness. He was expecting his mother. who
lives in San Francisco. to arrive in Wash
ington this month. He Is a nephew OF
Admiral selfridge, and has a brother
who is an officer in the navy.
Glenn II. Curtiss of the Aerial Expert
ment Association called up by long.dis
t2nPa fQlanhnnn hn ~
the accident. He notified Lieut. Sell
ridges family in San Francisco.
Wright yesterday replaced the propell-
ers which he has been using with an.
other pair, the blades of which are six
inches longer. They were used for the
h:st time in yesterdays disastrous flight
Many who have witnessed Wright
Nights at Fort Myer believe the change
of propellers caused the accident.
An examination Of the broken AIDE
showed that 1t had been snapped of at
point one-fourth of the distance from
tne hub. deep indsntation in the broken
piece indicated that it had struck some
other part of the aeroplane.
Wright Has His Joke.
Maj. George O. Squier. chairman Of the
Signal Corps aeronautical board and act,
ins chief signal officer Of the army. wa.
one of the first to see Mr.. Wright after
his injuries had been dressed. The firsi
words Wright uttered were:
II guess we won't take dinner together
TOMS ut. major"
While the surgeons were at work set
| ting Wright's leg he asked an attendan,
to carry word to his assistant. Taylor. to
ask him to examine the wrecked. machine
10 ascertain if there was anything wrong
with the transmission. Mr.. Taylor aft er
examining the wreck, stated that he did
not think there was anything wrong with
the transmission.
DR.. Howard H. Bailey. who attended
Lieut.. Selfridge. made the first announce
ment OF that officers death. Just after
the lieutenant had passed away the doc
tor came out of the room and to those
awaiting In the hall said:
He is dead.
His DEATH said the doctor. was due
| to a compound fracture at the base OF
the skull. He never regained conscious
ness from the moment he struck the
ground. despite the heroic remedies which
were administered.
There was absolutely no response to
the treatment given him. He passed away
peacefully