The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-11-18
 MEETS DEATH Killed on Birmingham
 Race Track. FRYING TO LOWER RECORD Emile Strieker Making Terrific Time When Tires Exploded. He Had Just Little While Previously Relieved Lewis strnng-Leon
 Barrows, Birmingham
 Chauffeur Is Injured.
 


 The tragic death of Emile Striclxer, the German automobile driver. while ma king sixty miles en hour in Renault machine around the track at the Birn- inghafn Fair Grounds at 3:s0 o'clock this morning. was the talk of the en- tire district today.
 Lewis Strang, tho daring automobile driver, who is to participate in the in ternationaI races to be run at Sayan- nah, Ga. Thanksgiving Day, to drivs . Renauit car began shortly after ' o'clock last night at the FaIr Grounds an effort to lower the twenty -four hour record. lie was relieved at 12:4h o'clock by Stricker. who was his close friend. Two hours later. one of the tires on a wheel of the machine ex- ploded, followed by the tire on another wheel and the big car circled around. throwing Stricker. face downward on the track, and also Leon Barrows. a local chauffeur, who drives an auto mobile for President c. c. Crawford. of the Tennessee Coal Iron and Rail- road Company, some distance away.
 There was a small crowd st the Fair Grounds at that hour watching tho race. and they immediately ran to the spot, thinking that the machine had run through the fence.
 Stricker was picked up hurriediy, as was Barrows, and both were placed aboard a street car to be brought to the city for attention Within twenty i've minutes Striclker was dead. HaF- rows was not dangerously hurt. The machine was not smashed all too pieces.
 William H. Plckens, promoter of tha race against time, ordered the re- mains seut to an undertaking roofns where they are being prepared for ship nent to New York. Mir. PickenB an- nouneed that Strang would not cancel his engagement to ride in the Inter national race at Savannah, but would 20 from here to that city and get ready for the race on Thanksgiving
 ,.i. Was an vanderbslt Cpdtess.
 Etricker was a native oE AlsAee Ter. rains province, GeFtnans. For fhe i&Rs four years he i1zasx been req AaiBg EEl France. and came to America a few waeks ago to drive Robert Graves Mercedes car in the Vanderbilt cup race on october 2A Stricker and Strang were close friends and he came here to assist in the race against time. Both iStrang anda Strickar arc on the pro- gram to drtYs s the Savannah race.
 . It is estftnatad that Stricher was running the machine at the rate of about sixty mtleslan hour when the tire exploded, and the car turtled. The tlirhtinR of the track was not very good, which may have had something to do with sharp turning of curves.
 The purpose Of the twenty-four hour race here was to lewer the record held by Robertson and Leseault established ut Brighton Beach last year, when 1,- TIT miles in twenty-four hours, or an average of 50 1-2 miles an hour was made.
 The race started at little after o'clock. Two thousand spectators were on hand. Strang made something like fifty miles an hour. During the second hour of strang's ride he met with an accident which was somewhat in the nature of the one which caused Strick- er's death. It was nUs noticed at the time for the reason that the tire was replaced with another by the machtn- iet.
 Barrows is Birmingham boy. about 1T years of age. He came to BirminE- ham from Michigan.
 The body of Stricker was viewed by hundreds of people today at the undorr taking establishment.
 One of the first to reach the scene of the accident was Walter r. Gammon. MT. Cannon arrived at the Fair Grounds early in the evening and was present when Strang began the death inviting race shortly after 2 o'clock. Several thousand persons were at she grounds early in the evening ana they began to leave toward the midnight hour
 .'shortiy before Strlcker left his couch where he enjoyed nap, savF Mr Gammon, "he complained of not Se.tinr the best in the world. When he was told something of the tlmc Strans mad been making. he said, We are bee hind a few miles and guess I'll have to get busy It was exactly ls:4S wnen ssIriclrer and the machinist entered the racer and the signal was given for the stnTt The men dashed on around the track at the rate of mile fin 1;O4 for .ovoctlv one hour and flfty-two seconds when they was a sharp report. A moment later there was another report and then some one cried, They've run into the fence The few spectators nresent rushed on down to the track and there an awful sight met our gaze. Scratched out on the track near the fence was Stricker, his face all cover ed with blood and nearly every bone In his body broken. Near him was psrrows. who was able to stand on his feet n fter he regained his breath. He was not fully conscious. however ana did not realize what had happened. The automobile was across tHe lEdCh showing that when the tire exploded the spokes went into the ground and ierked the machine around. I rushed for a doctor and when I got back stricker was dead and his body was on A street car, ready to be brought to the
 .:stricker appeared to be in good shape when he entered the car to re- lIeve stranE at l2:43.' said Harry DeneRre one of the scorers who was on the grounsd at the time. .'Very little time had to be taken out on ac- count Of olling and inspecting the ma chine and from the outset Strieker set q mace that would be hard to beat. He made fifty y-four miles during the first hour and was travelling at the, rate of sixty miles an hour when he passed the grand stand just before the aeci- dent He was probably not going quite so fast when the tire exploded, but he was travelling at a tefrifie clip.
 T was on the track at the time, talking to Mir. Piekens. We were dis cussing the fine record Strieker was making when suddenly there was report and then another report, and