New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1912-10-27
Crashes Into Group as They
Coast Down Steep Hill in
Brooklyn in "Skate-
mobiles"
SPECTATORS IN PANIC
Three Ambulances Called to
Remove Injured to Hospitals
Driver of the Car a
Student-Sees the
Crowd Too Late.

| one boy was killed, four were badly
| injured and n crowd Of persons wit
Messing the accident were so panic
, stricken last night, when an auto
mobile crashed into group Of boys
| coasting down the steep hill at Hop
! kinson avenue and McDougal street,
! Williamsburg, that the police reserves
from the Ralph avenue station had to
be called out. Three ambulances were
also called into service, and It was
many minutes before order was re-
stored.
The dead:
Sauer, Arthur, eleven years old, OF
No. 1873 Hopkinson avenue.
The injured:
| ChifoIo, Philip, eleven years old, Of
| No. 219 McDougal street.
Nelson, Charles, fifteen years old, Of
| No. 1874 Hopkinson avenue.
PoIito, Peter, ten years old, Of No. 1873
| Hopkinson avenue.
Littmann, Sidney, seven years old, OF
! No. 1913 Hopkinson avenue.
|
boys who live on Hopkinson avenue
and McDougal street to equip soap
| boxes with roller skates as runners,
and, thus provided with "skatemo-
! biles," to coast down the steep asphalt
! slope of Hopkinson avenue. Many
! times they had had narrow escapes
| from being run down by automobiles
| passing through McDougal street.
which cuts Hopkinson avenue from
| east to west, but these occasions have
only added to the exhilaration of the
/ sport and caused the boys to grow
more daring.
! Saucr and his little playmates had
been o. joying their thrilling rides down
/ the hi,i FOR more than an hour, when
/ they all started on a final race down
| the hill.
The boys all lined up on top Of the
| HILL "cranked" up their soap box au-
tomobiles and the word to start the
race was given. For o block or more
the contest was an even one. but just
before the McDougal street crossing
was reached sauer forged into the lead,
shouting and flushed with victory. His
| little machine went along at racing
speed, while he guided it's course with
| one foot trailing on the ground.
Then, just as the soap box cart
reached the middle of McDougal street
an automobile, driven and owned by
| Benjamin F. Connor, said to be a stu
dent in the School Of Mines at Colum-
bia University, and living at No. 1O8
Darbey street, Brooklyn, came through
McDougal street. The machine was
going at a moderate pace, but before
the man at the wheel could attempt TO
turn out Of the way the group Of Wild
| " shouting boys were I'm the middle Of
the street.
Sauer, still in the lead, was struck a
| terrific blow by the forward wheels OF
the automobile and tossed high In the
air. His companions crashed headlong
into the automobile a moment later.
Connor, who had three men in the ma
chine with him, managed to bring his
car to a stop within few feet He
leaped out Of his seat and ran to where
the Sauer boy lay motionless In the
| roadway.
Picking the boy up in his arms. Con-
nor ran to a nearby drug store and
| asked that medical attention be given
him. Then he ran back and with his
passengers helped the other boys TO
the drug store.
| While the boys were being attended
to in the drug store Patrolman Stan
wise, Of the Ralph avenue station, who
had been q block away when the acci-
dent happened, sent in ambulance calls
to the Bushwick, St. Johns and st.
Mary's hospitals. Seeing that Sauer
was in a serious condition, Stanwise
placed Connor under arrest.
Before the arrival of the ambulances
large crowd had gathered. 1t grew
so quickly that Stanwise sent for the
police reserves. These responded and
kept the crowd back SO that the ambu-
lance surgeons could do their work.
A single glance at young Sauer was
SQIIlClenI 10 STU" TIC BcOlb lndl lie
was beyond medical aid. They then
busted themselves in ministering to the
injuries Of the others, some Of whom
may die. The injured were rushed to
| st. Mary's Hospital.
Connor, who appeared in daze all
the time the surgeons were working
over the injured, realized his predica-
ment after Sauer had been pronounced
dead. He was then overcome with
grief and had to be attended by an
ambulance surgeon. He is technically
charged with homicide, although 1t was
plain to the police that the accident
was an unavoidable one
MAKES 7 OF ~ IN ONE DAY.
| al iv0c