New Ulm review., 1913-09-17
Two Additional
Auto Accidents
Reckless Speeding Results
in Collision of Two
Cars.
Vogtel Machine Loses
Wheel But No One
Is Hurt. ..

A near automobile accident occurred
Sunday afternoon shortly after one
o clock on Center Street near Mime
sofa opposite the Red Front Grocery.
Forum ately no one was hurt and very
little damage was done to either car.
Wto is to blame for the accident is
hard to say, as each of the chauffeurs
is trying to put the blame on the other
fellow. AS far as our reporter has
been able to learn, the Albert Gag
car, driven by Hugo Fesenmaier. was
coming down Center Street from near
the post Office toward Minnesota Street
ct rate trifle in excess of the speed
limit. Until nearly opposite the
"Fortschritt" Office, the driver held
his car about in the middle of the
street and then swerved quite suddenly
toward the curb on the Red Front
Grocery side. About the same time
Henry Fiene, driving bis fathers, DR..
Fiene's car, was coming up Minnesota
Street and turned the corner at Center
Street quite sharply. He also was
going trife faster than the law
allows. When he saw the other car
coming, he must have gotten ratified
in some way because instead of keep
ing to the right he turned to the left.
No doubt it seemed to him that the
other car was going to make turn to
go up Minnesota, but there was really
nothing to warrant such belief. In
the meantime Fesenmaier seeing the
| danger, got as close to the curb as he
could and had almost brought his car
to q stop when it was struck by the
Fiene car with sufficient impact to
break the rear fender. The only
damage to the Fiene car is cracked
axle which pust be replaced by new
one.
A large crowd soon gathered and
discussed the accident and tried to
lay the blame where it actually be-
longed, and during the course of the
remarks the city authorities came in
for a good roast because they per-
mitted the automobilists to praclic ally
run the town and do as they please.
One of our prominent merchants spoke
up and said that there wasn't another
town of the size of New Ulm in the
whole United States where the rules
universally adopted and observed
pertaining to automobiling are not
enforced. He mentioned quite q
number OF small towns in our neigh
borhood where all the rules for the
prevention of accidents are rigidly
enforced and he got a trife warm
under the caller when be referred to
the lsxness in vogue here in the
matter of the enforcement of the rules.
He may be right in his further remark
tn at be was afraid nothing would be
done in this mans town until seri-
Gus accident would quicken the public
conscience, because of few of our
prominent citizens who like to leave
their car in any old place and don't
want to be put to the bother OF fol-
lowing and obeying safe and sane
rules.
While hurrying homeward from
Nicollet just before the breaking of the
storm last Wednesday afternoon the
left front wheel broke off Of the Chas.
Vogtel five-passenger Buick touring
car, much to the constern alton and
dismay of the occupants. The accf-
dent took place near the Lutheran
school house between Nicollet and
Courtland and the detached wheel
hurdled three foot fence and came
to rest in corn field two hundred feet
away. Except for the bending OF the
fender on the left side 40 further dam
age was done.
At the time OF the accident Melvin
Vogtel was driving the car at q rate
of about twenty miles an hour and the
breaking of of the wheel was peculiar
because of the fact that no bumps or
sharp turns we're encountered just pre-
vious to the catastrophe. On exami-
nation of the broken parts it was
found that more than half of the axle
had been worn through and how the
break had been averted until that time
is q mystery.
The other passengers, Mrs. Chas.
Vogtel, Mrs. Al. Olson and Roland
Mayer, did not realize the narrow es-
cape they had had until they had time