The New York herald., 1920-01-18

tives. is among other things one
Of the most accident-infested places
in the country. according to the
latest hospital reports
Neither the watch your step" signs
that practically paper the city. nor the
excellent system of traffic regulation has
been able to cope fully with the tendency
OF the Manhattanite to get himself into
trouble. He even seems to hunt out un-
usual ways of doing it. Tho per capita
percentage of injury here is still away
above par. although it has gone down
some since prohibition came into being.
proving that there is a subtle relation
between the water wagon and the ambu-
lance.
With regard to the latter, the average
citizen must have wondered more than
once as these motors of misfortune
swooped through the streets like noisy,
grounding airships. where all the ambu-
lances were going, and why so many were
necessary. These questions are answered
in detail by the Flower Hospital, at Sixty
fourth street and Avenue A. 1t is able to
answer them efficiently. il ever an insu-
tuition was. for its four ambulances cover
an immense district. containing some OF
the chief accident belts, and ranging from
the East River to the North River, from
IForty-second street TO Ninety-sixth street
on the East Side. and from Forty-second
street to Seventieth street on the West
Side
With such a beat it is only natural that
the four ambulance drivers of the Flower
Hospital should be accident connoisseurs.
They are, from Reginald and Norman
| Day. heroes of the Argonne. one of them
a member of the famous Lost Battalion
to Bob Logan, OF the long ambulance rec
ord. straight on up to their head. Edwin
Barrett known as "Ligntnin' Ed You
could lo~k New York through with opera
glasses without finding any one who knows
more about accidents and what peculiar
forms they take. and what causes them
and whether they are necessary than Ed
Barrett does
His fourteen-year record dates back to
the days when ambulances were hitched to
teams. and it was accounted mad haste
to arrive two hours after the call had
been sent out for an ambulance. Later
he drove one horse of fire-house training.
He has played his part Of service in all
of the major accidents in New York on
his beat during the last fourteen years
He picked UP two of the threee men who
chose to jump from Brooklyn Bridge as
the nearest exit from life. He was on
hand when the animal trainers lions
sauntered out of Yorkville Theatre a few
years ago, past a terrified audience, and
into terrified city. Ed Barrett has
been among those present at every sub
way cavern and elevated accident. and
fire, and explosion. He carried some OF
the survivors of the Titanic m his ambu-
lance.
He answered his share of the 600 am
bulance calls that the Flower Hospital
received during the past year, about six
teen daily. From long experience, he has
come to know the accident-days OF the
week, and the accident-months Of the year.
He can even forecast from the weather
what accidents are likely to happen dur
ing the day. and can opine when he
looks out of tho window in the morning
that IL looks like a good day for smashed
skulls.
Here's how Ed Barrett classifies acci-
cents:-Preventable and unpreventable,
with the preventable accidents in the
majority. More accidents due TO pure
carelessness befall men than women. he
says. in spite OF the cid masculine joke
about the way women get off the cars.
'Lightnin' Ed will tell you that it has
been years since no was called to pick UP
a woman who got off the car the wrong
way, and that II is his opinion that
feminism and shorter skirts have struck
that accident from the list altogether.
The most prevalent preventable acci-
dent is tho automobile accident. First III
rank come collisions, next skidding acci-
dents in which pedestrians are injured.
Children mako up the great majority OF
this latter class. Broken skulls. broken
legs and broken arms ara among the
forms tiese injuries take.
Next comes what Mr.. Barrett terms
'the absent-minded accident"
People don't look where they're going
half the time he declares. They sec
street car coming and step back right
In the path Of a taxi. Or they happen TO
remember how they've forgotten that list
about the satin trimming they wanted
Go match for Ethel. and the sugar they
we're going TO try to get at the grocery.
and stop dead still in front or hmou-
sine. Hardly day goes by that we don't
have somo absent-minded accident
Elevator accidents make "A close second
70 motor calamitics. Tho cominones'
form of these is getting crushed between
the swinging doors Failing down the
steps comes second In line.
'There are folks that can fall two steps
and break an arm," Mr.. Barrett explains
In some disgust.
January. February and March are tho
chief accident months.
Monday and Tuesday are stfll big acci'
dent days" Barrett says. 81 guess pro
| lhibition isn't working out 97ik per CEN
| -
them, and the fact that it's usually one
PERSONS hangover and another persons
accident doesn't alter the reason for them
But there are 300 fewer people hurt IL
accidents every month and brought Z
Flower Hospital since prohibition came
lin"
Train accidents are very common II
that part OF Flower Hospitals ambulance
beat which extends TO Death avenue. neal
the North River. The avenue won its
name, in fact, because OF the large mum
ber Of people who were killed or seriously
injured there.
Just yesterday the train ran over :
man over there on Death avenue related
Barrett "He was hurt so bad that th'
doctor had to operate on him right there
in order to save his life at all. We LET
In n great hurry afterwards, In order Il
rush him to the hospital. We hadn't beer
back more than few minutes. when some
one called up. in kind of queer, scarce
voice
" rs this Flower Hospital7' they said
Well, please come back and get you
leg"
The conmorest accident that befaIi
III L. fall ll...< >.sf x<f Nvt