The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-06-12

age. They will not be received in ex-
change for postage stamps nor will
postage stamps be accepted in ex-
change for postal savings cards or
stamps.
Dangeri Beware of accidents!
A fourteen foot road.
\ culVert.
Steep banks on either side.
No room for two teams to pass.
Leading to it a road down a steep
hill.
Tho road leads from the Rochester
cemetery and is one of the most con-
stant1y travelled roads in the county.
These are the conditions on the Ro-
chester cemetery road about two miles
northwest of Topeka. H. E. Gaines of
1913 West Laurent street a stone
work contractor, will circulate a petit
ton in the near future to have the
road made safe. The present condi-
ton are dangerous. Mr.. Gaines at
when his wife and daughter, Mrs.
Irwin, and children were injured in a
runaway near the culvert mentioned.
Mrs. Gaines is just recovering from
two broken ribs sustained in the ac-
cident. The others were badly bruised.
The horses had become unmanageable.
To avoid going over the culvert Mrs.
Gaines had to turn the horses into a
little draw just east of the bridge.
The buggy overturned. However. had
the horses reached the culvert, rearing
and plunging as they were the team,
buggy and all would have gone over
down to the stream some 20 feet be-
low. A rotten rail is the only
protection against such an accident.
The neighborhood are in constant fear
that something like this will happen.
Road Only IA Feet Wide.
By actual measurement the culvert
over which a constant stream of traf-
fic is passing is only IA feet across.
For some distance the road running
east and west is not much wider.
Just west of the culvert is the Roch-
ester cemetery. From this the road
makes a sharp curve as it comes down
the hill to meet the narrow bridge.
This road is the aversion of the I'M
dertakers who pass it with hearses on
the way to the cemetery. Many times
a splitting of a coffin has been narrow
ly averted. If anything would go wrong
with the harness, or the team would
swerve to one side little passing over
the narrow arch bridge with it's rotten
railing-the result can be better mag
ined than described.
The ray of hope is this: By the
peculiar structure of the bridge and
the lay of the ground, it is thought
that the conditions would be much i'm
proved with comparatively little work
or cost. The culvert curves toward
the north The banks on that side
slope out. 1t appears that the culvert
could be easily widened so that at least
two teams could pass, or that a heavy
hearse or hack would not be in con-
slant danger of going over the bank
Just east of the dangerous narrow
bridge the road is not much wider.
However, that means the road pro-
per, for it lies between bluffs with a
wide margin between each side of the
road and the bluff. 1t is thought that
the bluffs could be partially leveled to
help widen the road. At least 100 feet
on either side of the culvert as well
as the culvert itself needs widening
before the highway ceases to be one
of the most dangerous in Shawnee
county.
Conditions Are a Menace.
1t is dangerous even for an expert
enced driver who knows the road even
in good weather, it is said. This is not
to mention the danger to inexperienced
drivers, those not familiar with the
road, or the worse menace the high
way offers in muddy weather.
The matter has been taken I'D with
the county commissioners several times
in the years passed. The reply if is
understood, Get enough signers to 4
petition for improving the road and
the necessary improvements and re
pairs will be made
AS to that Mr.. Gaines said this af
ternoon:
Will Circulate Petition.
ct am willing to take enough time
off from my work to get the sfgners
The accident in which two of my wife 2
ribs were broken called my attention
to the danger as never before From
what 1 have talked with the people in
the neighborhood we will have no trou-
BILE in getting signers. The undertakers
who dread for the hearses to pass
there, are especially interested in the
matter. They tell me that quite Of
ten hearse narrowly avoids going over
the culvert.
Besides several auto accidents hava
been narrowly averted on account of
the conditions mentioned. feel sure
that this lie the most dam er,nnrz rlaca