Los Angeles herald., 1909-11-27
CORONER WILL
PROBE FATAL
CAR ACCIDENT
MRS. JACOBS IS IGNORANT OF
TERRIBLE OUTCOME
TRAIN CREW EXoNERATED BY
COMPANY
Little Hope Held Out for Recovery of
Infant, Though Mother May Sur
vive - Brutal Conduct of
Burly Negro Excused

CI EARCHING investigation into the
~ Latin station wreck Of Thursday
~ night, when a Pacific Electric
car crushed out the lives OF Nicholas
Jacobs and his four children, will be
made this morning at 10 o'clock when
an inquest will be held at Cunning
ham d O'Connor's undertaking estab-
lishment. Coroner Calvin Hartwell
will conduct the inquest personally.
Eight or ten witnesses will be called,
but the principal testimony will be
given by John and Frank Jacobs and
w. II. Turner of Watts.
Mrs. Jacobs and her 6-months-old
daughter Elizabeth, are at the Crocker
street hospital in care of Drs. Byron,
Hutchinson and Gates. The mother re-
gained consciousness yesterday after
noon, but the infant remains in n
state of coma. There is some hope for
the mothers recovery, but there Is
practically none for that of the child.
All news of the accident is being
kept from Mrs. Jacobs for fear that in
her delicate condition the shock may
result fatally. To her pteous appeals
for information about her family there
is given but one answer-'They are all
safe" Mrs. Jacobs has borne her suf-
fering with great fortitude. Her chief
concern seems to be for the baby.
Train Crew Exonerated
officials of the Pacific Electric COM
pany have already exonerated the
train crew, composed of w. r. Terwil-
Tiger. motorman; e. J. Holland, con
ductor, of all blame for the accident.
The position of the com pany is that
the Jacobs family was at fault in driv-
ing onto the tracks, and that in order
to avoid collision, the motOrman used
all means in his power by setting the
brakes and reversing the current. The
company aserts that it was a physical |
impossibility to bring the car to stop !
in less than $50 feet with conditions
perfect, and in less than 1000 to 1900 |
feet with the tracks wet and slippery. |
AS the motorman did not discover the |
auto on the track until the car was
within less than $50 feet of the ma
chine. the company claims an acci-
dent was absolutely unavoidable.
AS to the second collision of the in
terurban coach with a Central avenue
car at Seventh street and Central ave-
me. the officials of both companies are
more or less silent. They say that the
Injuries received by the passengers In
the Cantral avenue car are slight ana
that fixing responsibility is matter
between the two corporations, the Pa
cific Electric and the Los Angeles
railway company. Both these COM
panies are controlled by the same in
terests.
Up to Commission
Report Of the accident has already
been made to the state railroad COM
mission. When the full investigation
of the accident has been completed by
the company, further report of 1t will
be made to the commission. 1t Is
thought that an effort will be made to
have the commission order gates and
signal bells established at all grade
Had a crossing gate been
lowered. or had signal bell been ring
ing, it is declared by experts that the
fatal accident would have been avoided
absolutely,
Every crossing of every railway line
IN Los Angeles county, with but two
exceptions, is what is known as a grade
crossing or q crossing where the tracks
are on the same relative grade as the
public highway. SO long as such cross
Ings are maintained, it is declared, the
lives of persons crossing any railway, |
either afoot or riding, are endangered. |
II took a long time to bring the rail |
proper crossing projections, but since
The establishment of these the loss of |
life has been greatly lessened, and the |
sums paid out for damages by railroads |
has been reduced more than enough to |
offset the cost of the improvements In |
the east most of the railway grades are |
several feet above the highway grades. |
Protection Too Costly
one of the officials of the Pacific |
Electric company said yesterday in |
reference to grade crossings that it is |
impossible for the company to MAIN |
tain crossing gates, flagmen and signal |
BELLS at every grade crossing along the
light of way of the company. He de- |
,lared that the cost would be out of
proportion to the good accomplished |
or one thing, and for another that the |
light of way was private and had been |
purchased so as to prevent trespassn5. |
He said that the Jacobs family became |
the moment they entered |
he private right of way of the COM
oany, and that they were there at their |
)wn risk and peril.
1t will be upon the grounds that the |
Jacobs family were trespassing on pri- |
yate property that the company will |
seek to shun all responsibility for the |
accident at the inquest today. The |
company will claim that the headlight /
1f the swiftly moving coach could be !
seen for fully a mile, and that for this |
reason the Jacobs family had no right |
10 run the automobile on the tracks |
,r to attempt to cross until after the |
,ar had passed.
According to the claim agent of the |
Pacific Electric, the coach was not run |
ming at full speed, but was going at |
about thirty to thirty-five miles an |
hour. When Peter Jacobs got out of |
the auto. preparatory to boarding a |
,ar for the city, the machine, it is |
,laimed, was halted some eighty feet |
rom the tracks, at a little store. I'M |
nediately the auto was started again |
and ran on to the second or northbound |
tracks Either the engine died" or
Nicholas Jacobs, who was at the steer
ng wheel. stopped the auto. set the |
brakes and prepared to wait for the
,ar to pass, not knowing that he was
n dangers path
Two Theories Advanced
The other theory advanced by the
is that Jacobs drove his car
IN the tracks and would have got
across had he not heard his son Peter, |
who had got out of the automobile,
,all him to stop. Peter saw the car