Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1912-10-09
Average Speed of Victor Below Rec
ord Time Which Was Made in Last
Years Contest-Hundred Thou
sand Crowd Onto Course.
ORDER OF FINISH IN GRAND PRIx

tsHSy HHi9!S0 70 pFoLeCt spectators
Milwaukee, Wis, Oct. Ralph De
Palma, in a desperate effort to win
the Grand Prix race, was seriously
injured when the Mercedes car he
was driving crashed into Caleb
Bragg's machine, travelling 100 miles
an hour, and overturned. Tom Alley.
De Palm's mechanic, escaped with
minor injuries.
Bragg's car leaped from the tangle
and carried it's driver to victory.
De Palma suffered a fracture of the
left hip, a broken rib, and abdominal
injuries. 1t is feared the ragged edge
OF the rib passed through his mites
tines. Surgeons said he had a fight
ing chance" for recovery, but that it
will take several days to decide.
Alley remained in the car. He has
a broken shoulder blade and other
less serious injuries.
Decisive Victory for Bragg.
Bragg's victory without De Palma's
competition was decisive. His time
for the 40 miles was 5:59:25, an
average OF 69.3 miles per hour.
Erwin Bergdoll, the Philadelphia
millionaire, was second, 51.9 seconds
ahead of Albert Anderson in the
Stutz, the only American car to COM
plete the race. Bergdoll's time was
6:14:58, Anderson's 6:15:22.
Barney O1d1eld finished fourth.
Time, 6:29:54. George Clark was fifth
and Bob Burman was awarded sixth
before he finished, to safeguard spec
tators who were crowding onto the
track.
Accident Stops Brave Trial.
De Palma's accident was the climax
of his terrific attempt, beginning in
the forty-second lap, to overhaul
Bragg. With success within his grasp,
the crash came. When the leaders
passed the tape at the beginning of
the fi%fty-second lap, Bragg led the
Italian by two minutes and nine sec
onds.
De Palma lost control and the ma
chine crashed over on it's side. De
i Ink 11CO vi LIZ HASSA3
but Alley chung to his seat.
Accidents Knock Out Others.
De Palma was not the only driver
who met with accidents. OF the
twelve cars which started only six
finished.
Teddy Tetzlaff, who had set the
pace for thirty laps, averaging Y IA
miles an hour, was thrown out on
the thirty-first lap by a broken piston
rod which prevented chair retention.
At the time he was eliminated he led
by seven minutes.
Bob Burman was the first to leave
the race A broken piston was the.
cause. Later he took Joe Horan's
place at the wheel Of a Benz to drive
the last fifty miles. He was tagged
with three laps still to go. Spencer
Wishart was put out in the third lap.
A connecting rod beariAg was broken
on his Mercedes.
Hughes, Mercer, was put out on
the seventeenth round with a broken
gasoline line, and Fontaine, Lozier,
quickly followed with a sprung steer
ing knUckle.
Praise Feat of Anderson.
With twelve cars starting and only
six finishing, the achievement Of An
derson in the Stutz in carrying Amer
ica's colors to third place in the great
est of all international races deserves
approval.
Although the track was closed at 8
o'clock, the crowd, which numbered
far over 100000, filled the stands and
lined the whole course.
Every car was away at 1914
o'clock, Burman starting the field in
the 120-horsepower Benz. Oldfield
was the last to leave.