The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1908-08-10
AUTO IS D|TCHED;
TWO men KILLED
A CATHOLIC PRIEST AND HIS
FRIEND MEET FATAL
ACCIDENT.
MACHINE TURNED TURTLE.
Two Women and a Doctor Who Were
In the Party Escaped Injury
Priest was Prominent In
Cleveland Diocese.

Toledo, Aug. 10-When an auto
mobile plunged over o steep embank
ment on the Mitehaw read two and O
half miles west OF Sylvanla, o.. Sun
day afternoon, Charles W. Pohlman
wealthy Cleveland importer and
merchant tailor, and Father George
j. Vahey, pastor OF ST. Columbkills
church, Cleveland, were instantly
killed beneath the car Mrs. Charles
w. Pohlman, her daughter Florence
and F c. Dietzel, Cleveland dentist
were In the touring car, but were
saved from injury by the high back
of the tonneau.
The automobile landed at the bot.
tom of the embankment bottom-side
up. The priests head was crushed be.
tween the edge OF the car and a huge
stone. Mr.. Pohlman, who was driv.
ing the machine, was entangled in the
steering gear, the wheel crushing into
his chest. Death came to Father
Vahey instantly and Mr.. Pohlman
lived less than a minute. Pohlman's
neck was probably broken and his
chest crushed.
f. C DietZel struggled from under
the tonneau, assisted the women out
and then examined the bodies OF the
two men in the front of the car Real
izing the men were dead the dentist
seated the women on the bank and
ran half mile TO the home of Stephen
Eley, where he found four or FIVE men
who were willing to return to the
wreck with him. In the meantime
Miss Pohlman had tainted and she
was carried to the Eley farmhouse
and doctors summoned from Sylvania
Mrs. Pohlman refused to leave the
scene until the dead body OF her hus
band was released from the wreck.
The party left Cleveland at 3
O'Clock Saturday afternoon and spent
the night in Fremont They arrived
in Toledo at 10 q. m. Sunday.
The scene OF the accident was at
the Eley bridge across Ten Mile creek,
two and half miles west of sylvia.
mia. About 20 feet west of the bridge
is deep hole In the middle of the
road, stretching nearly across It. The
hole was full OF water, and, Just after
crossing the bridge MIR. Pohlman
guided his machine over TO the left
side of the road to avoid the hole
The sides of the embankment at that
point are thickly lined with shrubbery
and small trees and the party did not
realize that they concealed steep
bank.
The front wheels OF the machine
went over the edge of the embank.
ment just as the rear wheel struck
the edge OF the hole in the road. The
jumping of the rear wheels in the hole
tossed the machine over the embank.
ment
Father Vahey was ordained a priest
in 1887 and came TO Cleveland as as.
sistant pastor Of St Johns cathedral,
Later he became pastor of the same
cathedral. He has had charge OF his
present parish ten years.
The automobile trip which resulted
in the death Of Father Vahey and
Pohlman was planned by Pohlman.
Father Vahey was invited to accom-.
pany the party, together with Dr. Diet.
eel. The Pohlmans were members of
Father Valleys parish.
The trip, as planned by Pohlman,
was to have taken the party to De
troit. across to Canada and east to
Toronto. They expected to spend a
few days at the latter place. The re.
turn was to have been by way OF Mia
CARA Falls and Buffalo.