The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1909-05-03
LITTLE JOE'S
PREMONITION
OF DISASTER
Dreamed About Dead Sister
on Morning When He
Was Run Over By Two
Trains

Mamma. if die will 1 be buried
by sister," asked little seven-year-old
Joseph Kometz when he woke up last
Tuesday morning. At noon of the
same day the boy was run over by
two trains on the New Haven road
| opposite his home at Hancock avenue,
HOLSTER Heights. in Stratford. The
first train cut off the boys heels. The
second cut off both legs midway be-
tween the knees and hips. The boy is
now resting easily at his home max
ing brave fight for life and his ply
Sicians say that he will recover.
Every day at about noon the switch
er draws up on the siding in the rear
of Sections stone yard on Stratford
avenue, in Stratford. and a crowd of
school boys amuse themselves by
jumping on the cars and taking rides.
Tuesday was no exception to the rule
and little Joe Kometz was one of the
Michael kometz. on HOLSTER Heights
district. opposite the place where he
was injured. The section is known as
dead mans curve among the residents
deaths which resulted from walking on
the tracks 1t is estimated 20 persons
have lost their lives on this curve in
the last ten years.
Many of the children from the Hol-
lister Heights school cross the tracks
at this point on their way home to
G1nner. Now the teachers of the
school have forbidden the children to
a few minutes in advance of the
usual time to allow the children to go
home by the way of Bruce avenue.
crossing the tracks through the viaduct
on that thoroughfare.
Tuesday Little Joe jumped the
switcher. 1t seems that he was alone
at the time in that part Of the train.
He rode back and forth a while and
then when the train stopped he jump
ed off and attempted to reach his home
on the other side by crawling under a
freight car. The train started, catch
ing the little fellow before he could
get out. The wheels of the car pass
ed over both feet cutting off the heel
of one foot and part OF the other. In
his crippled condition the little fellow
bra-vely started to crawl across the re-
naming four tracks to reach the other
side. Before he could gain the en-
bankment the express due in this city
1877 came around the curve. The
little fellow made desperate efforts to
get across but was only able to clear
his body. The wheels of the engine
saw the body as he came around the
curve, reversed his engine, but could
not stop the train. A teacher of the
HOLSTER Heights school whose name
is not known discovered the boy before
the train was stopped
The little fellow was making a deS-
perate effort to reach the track side,
pulling himself along with his hands,
and dragging his mangled limbs be-
hind him.
He was taken to his home. Drs.
Blank and McQueeny were called.
They amputated the mangled extrem-
tiles. When asked why he made the
remark, he did when he woke up that
fateful morning the boy said: 'I was
dreaming. Mamma about sister. and
L thought something was going to
happen. If 1 die I want to be buried
by sister, The sister he referred to
died about six months ago. She was
II years old and very much beloved in
the household But Little Joe won't
die unless some unforeseen complication
sets in. He is cheerful and does not
realize the terrible experience through
which he passed.