Los Angeles herald., 1909-04-26
MOTORCYCLlST
HURLED 40 FEET;
TWO MEN DYING
SAUCER TRACK ACCIDENT MAY
BE DOUBLE FATALITY
1 RACER THROWN AMONG CROWD
is UNlNJURED
Four Thousand Spectators See Man
Travelling at Terrific Speed Flung
Into Grandstand in sensa-
tlonaI Accident
continued from parc one,

pact of Earharts body with those OIL
the injured spectators had served 10
check the speed at which he was traV-
cling. and he fell to the ground, TWEEN
~ feet below. but a few feet beyond
the end of the stand. Hundreds or
spectators rushed from the stands to
the spot where Earhart lay and were
dumfounded to find him reclining on
his side, resting on one elbow, whoily
conscious and apparently unlnJureu'
He was assisted to his Feet, ana aiter
a hasty examination 1t was found tnat
beyond the possibility of broken rib,
because of a rather severe pain in MS
right side, his injuries were nominal
His fingers were bleeding as a result
of their contact with the rough boards
of the front and end of the grand
stand, but no bones are believed to
have been broken.
After resting on the ground for a
short time, where an attending physi-
clan gave him q careful examination,
he was removed to the receiving sta
ton and almost Immediately taken
home.
It was some time before it was gem
orally known that Piper and Henry
had been injured, and much longer
time before the serious nature of their
injuries became known. Pipers ear
was bleeding profusely and medical
assistance was rushed to where ne lay
on one OF the seats of the grandstand,
the crowd being held back by main
force by the half dozen policemen
present Henry was not known at
first to have been injured, and 1t was
only after he had walked around the
grandstand in q daZed manner for
some little time that the other spec
tators noticed that he was acting
strangely
In State of Coma
He was then stretched out on one
of the top seats of the stand and eff
forts were made to arouse him from
a state OF coma into which he grad
ualiy sank. Efforts to ascertain his
identity or the location of any pain
proved unavailing, Henry being unable
to talk, much less to act in any ration
al way. Gradually bump on the left
cheek below the temple and other
slight Commissions pointed their telltale
signs and as soon as an ambulance
could arrive all three injured men were
hurried to the receiving hospital.
1t is believed that Earhart struck
Piper as the latter was peering forward
over the rail to watch the impending
accident, the force of the impact frac-
turing his skull, and that Piper was,
In turn, thrown against Henry with
such force as to injure his friend in
much the same peculiar manner. What
portion of Earhart's body struck Piper
1t is impossible to say, as the state
ments of witnesses are at much
variance on this point. The most nat
ura1 thing would have been for Ear
hart to have hit him with his left
shoulder as he left the saddle of his
machine and the fact that the rider s
left shoulder is found to have been
slightly dislocated may be accounted
for in this theory.
Women tainted and pandemonium
fnf n faW while the
police made hurried efforts to hold the
crowds back from the stands and off
the track. For moment it was feared
that the startled crowd would rush
across the tracks and be run down by
the remaining riders in the race, who
had continued on in their mad fight,
but Starter Adair, by his presence of
mind in signaling the riders off the
track. speedily averted this danger.
One of the most remarkable features
of Earhart's miraculous escape was the
fact that no part of his body came in
contact with hard obstacle from the
moment he left his machine until he
struck the ground, as well as the fact
that the aperture through which he
flew at the end of the grandstand hap
pened to be just that point. Had the
angle of his flight been veered the
least fraction in either way his head
must inevitably have come in contact
WITH elLncE Tie SGdlS OF the
studdings of the grandstand and his
brains been dashed out. This aperture
is a portion of the end of the stand
that had never been boarded up and
was barely larger than the circumfer-
ence of Earhart's body. Yet 1t is not
believed that he even grazed any side
of 1t as he went through it.
The other riders in the race were
Fred Huyck. A. Ward, Charles Bake
and NJ j. Graves
Piper and Henry were warm
friends. Piper has until recently been
employed as a conductor on the Re-
dondo street car line. Last fall he went
east to visit his parents, returning to
Los Angeles about three months ago
week ago he moved from 1903 East
Fifty-second street to the home of Mr..
and Mrs. f. G. Henry, 1893 West Fiji
tieth place.
Since returning to Los Angeles he
has not been employed and was plan
ming to return to his home to visit his
mother.
Piper is rs years old, the son of Mr..
and Mrs. e. ], Piper 7O3 South Univer-
sty avenue, Normal, Ill. He has two
brothers, Edward L. Piper and Mark
2. Piper, who live with the parents.
Howard Piper is spoken of highly by
all who know him and was one of the
most popular street car men in the
lily. iASNiOuo w ilAo ICLuIH cdSt last
fall he was injured by being caught
between two cars, but his injuries were
not serious. He then gave up railroad
ing, and after visiting his mother,
came back to Los Angeles with the
intention of starting in business. Be-
ing unsatisf1ed with the outlook, ne
had planned to go to Normal some day
this coming week.
Charles C. Henry, Piper's companion,
lives with his parents on West Fiji
tieth place. He is salesman and
stenographer in the real estate office
of the BurckG wynn company at 1913
South Hill street. and has lived here
for many years. enjoying a large cir
Gle of acquaintances He is 81 years
of age and is married.
At midnight Piper's condition was
very serious and the doctors held out
no hope for his recovery, although
Henry was showing marked improve
ment In his condition and has a good
fighting chance to recover.
Patten at Cattle Ranch