The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-03-30

| tracks. The former road has sunk and
| twice has the county had a new road
cut out of the hill side. AS rapidly as
| this is done. however, the roadbe slides
off the hillside. The roadway is now
about II feet wide and an embankment
20 TO II feet deep extends most of the
distance across the road and is hun
red yards long. There are no guards
nor danger signals to warn driA ers that
there is danger ahead. The roadway is
not safe. This was demonstrated when
{. wagon, driven past the scene of the
accident, broke through the crust of
hard ground which forms the roadbed
disclosing a h.'le several feet deep. 1t
is believed that the cracks extending
back into the hill and which cannot be
seen on the surface are responsible for
the sliding of the earth.
1t is believed that a high retaining
wall of concrete will hold solid and
prevent further sliding of the earth
but meanwhile no guard rails, danger
signs or other warning to drivers have
been posted.
The right front wheal of the car went
over the embankment when John Nc
Cluan tried to turn back into the road
way He had driven to the right side
the road to escape holes in the road
way. He thought, according to a state
ment made to member of the Smith
Auto company, that hs had passed the
embanl<ment. When he saw his mis-
take he tried to turn the car toward
the hill and take the roadway he had
left few minutes before He was too
near the en:bankment. however, and the
right front wheel went over, dragging
down the rest of the machine, which
turned turtle completely.
The Second Accident Here.
This is the second auto accident with
in ten days at the embankment. John
Cardwen and wife narrowly escaped
death when the right wheels of their
auto went over the embankment little
more than a week ago. The machine
did not go quite far en".gh towards
the embankment to overbalance. Card
well assisted his wife out OF the car
and then left himself. c. o. Ansel. of
Topeka, helped Cardweu right his car.
Even this narrow escape did not rouse
those responsible for the condition OF
the road to the point of putting up
danger signals or guard rails
The road has been in bad condition
since the Union Pacific Railroad COM
rany put in a double track between
Topeka and Kansas City. 1t is be-
Heved that the heavy charges of dyna-
mite used ic blasting SO shook the
earth forming the. hills that 1t has
since been impossible to prevent slid
ing. At any rate there was never a
serious landslide before and there have
been a number of them since. They
continue. Half mile west of the
scene of this mornings accident Is an
other bad piece of road. Here guard
rail was placed around the embankment
guard rail lies at the bottom or the
embankme the earth on which 1t
stood, having rolled toward the Union
Pacific tracks. The State Journal has
printed repeated statements as to the
condition of the road as a result of the
dynamiting, fearing that some such
accident as occurred this morning
would result.
But beyond cutting a. new road OUT
of the hill. which would cave in with
in few weeks and necessitate another
road being cut. no action has been Ia
zen to make the road safe. Even the
SIMPLEST precautions were not taken to
prevent an accident
At shortly after o'clock this morn
ing party of workmen from the Smith
Auto company rolled the car over, rals- |
ed it to the road and one of them ran |
it back to Topeka. 1t was little dam |
aged.
Wilson In Dewey Shooting.
c. l. Wilson, who, it is reported this |
afternoon, is more seriously injured
than was at first believed. is a charac- |
his connection with the DeWey-Berry |
feud which resulted in bloodshed in |
western Kansas a few years ago. VIII |
son with Chauncey Dewey, Went TO Lne
Berry brothers resisted and some OF i
them were shot to death Wilson was
tried when Dewey and others were
Iron eht into court for their share in /
a ranchman living near Manhattan.
G. G. Anderson, who jumped from the
auto, thus escaped being caught be-
meath it, and came down on top # the
overturned machine. was untll recently
a Manhattan merchant He sold book
and sporting goods store there rev
days ago. 1t is understood here that
he was to enter the employ Of the Smith
company.
Were Running Slowly.
when the road narrowed at Calhoun
Bluffs said Mr.. Smith this morning,
land there was an embankment at the
right oe the road. About 18 inches OF
road caved in at the edge of this en-
bankment made by the railroad COM
pany, and the car plunged over the
embankment, turning completely over,
and bruising everyone more or less.
''Mr. Scott died within five minutes
from the shock, 1 beheVe. ne was
after 1 was extr1cated from
under the machine and as he was SICK
at the stomach, told him to sit down.
He died soon afterward. I was caught
under the machine and Mr.. McCluan
and Mr.. Scott lifted it on-almost
900 pounds-and don't know now
they did it.
Something must have hit me, as I
do not have any definite idea as to
what happened just about that time.
am just discovering that / am bruised
My clothing is torn and my knee and
leg pains me-
81 felt the car going.'' said Mr.. An
derson, in speaking of the accident
and jumped falling on top OF the ma
chine.
"Wilson was thrown out and he must
have hit rock. The machine just slid
off the bank and turned completely
over. There was no top nor wind shield
on the machine. If there had been they
would have broken the fall to certain
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