Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1917-10-15
TELL JURY.
Of DOUBLE
I TRAGEDY !

Every incident connected with the
death of Earl E. Morrell and E. Dewey
Bickel, who We're killed early yester-
day morning when the motorcycle up
on which they were riding crashed in
to a Central Avenue Dairy milk wagon
two miles out on North Central Aven-
ne, was gone into thoroughly by COro-
ner Frank De Souza at an inquest held
yesterday afternoon. The identity of
Bickel had been established soon after
daylight when several persons identi-
fled the body at the Moore K Mcclellan
undertaking establishment as that of
the young man who had been living at
the Bonner Hotel on South Fifth street
and who formerly had been employed
ut Il reclamation camp north of town.
Beyond the identification of Bickel,
no new facts We're brought out at the
inquest other than those which ap-
peared in The Republican yesterday
morning The testimony of the wit
nesses before the coroner's jury was
substantially in accordance with the
details of the early morning tragedy
given in this paper.
AS stated yesterday morning, one of
the young men who met an untimely
end as a result of driving a motorcycle
at a high rate of speed and without a
light, was Earl Z. Morrell, brother OF
Constable Roy MOrrell. The other was
Bickel who came to Arizona from Port
land, Ind, about six years ago. His
mother, Mrs. Angelin Bickel lives there.
Papers and letters found in Bickefs
room at the Bonner Hotel revealed the
fact that the young man was member
of Red Cross Lodge, No. IS, Knights of
Pythiass of Portland, Ind. and also of
the Carpenters and Joiners Union, Lo-
cal No. 1899, of this city. 1t was fur
ther evident that he was about to be-
come a member of the Masonic order.
-aIugh McHugh, the driver of the Cen
trail Avenue Dairy milk wagon which
fis,ayed in the affair, was the first wit
Gess before the coroners jury. He said
he left the dairy about two O'Clock and
had proceeded about quarter of a
mile south of the dairy when the crash
came. He was riding inside the wagon
and on the right side of the road. The
rattle of the milk bottles and the bottle
cases prevented him from hearing the
approach of the unlighted machine. The
fiji st he knew was when one OF the
horses reared, squealed and fell back
against the front Of the wagon. Al
though daZed from the sudden impact
floor uf the wagon and went to the
front or the rig.
The sight which met his gaze nearly
llnnerved him, but the plunging of the
injured horse. both front legs of wicf
were broken, gave him work to do ano
he attempted to pull the animal from
the wreckage. Dimly he discerned thai
there were two apparently lifeless bod
les in the mass of debris. He was un
able to lift the horse, but he managed
to drag the body of one of the mer
away from the wagon. He is quite GER
tain this man was dead at that time
AS to the other there was no doubt.
Hurrying back to the Central Av-
enue Dairy ranch, which was about
quarter of a mile distant, McHugi
called Thomas c. Geare, ranch fore
man. and his brother, Hubert Geare
The three returned to the scene OF th'
wreck and there they We're later Jolne'
by other hands from the ranch. SooI
after DIR. George H. Woodall. medlca
director of the Phoenix Sanitarium
was summoned and the police station
and sheriff's office notified.
The story of McHugh. tcld in
straightforward manner, was tn
story of the affair The remainder o
the testimony was merely perfunctor.
and served to make the coroners rec
ords complete. Foreman Geare wa
called and told of having been sum
moned by McHugh and described TN
wreckage. DR.. Woodall said ne ma
heard machine pass the sanitarium
ligh rate of speed and was of the be
lief that it was probably the same ma
chine that struck the wagon Of TN
he had no way to be certain except tha
il was a very few minutes later tha
he was called. The accident happene
about 100 yards from the sanitariun
DIR Woodall also described the injurie
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