Free trader-journal and Ottawa fair dealer. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1920-1927, 1921-10-07

The carelesness OF woman driver,
who was driving a large Cadillac tour.
| ing car which carried three other lady
passengers. at a very high rate of
/ sped was attributed as the cause
of the accident yesterday afternoon
about o'clock, when a large inter
national truck turned turtle about
three miles west of Ottawa on the
county home road, pinning its driver
! Charles II. Lawrence of Peoria under.
meath it and rendering MIN uncon-
scious
Lawrence. although it was feared
by attending physicians was seriously
Injured Yesterday regained conscious
ness late in the afternoon and exam
nations disclosed that he was not in
jured except for a bad shock and sew
eral minor scratches and bruises.
That he escaped without receiving
any broken bones or being killed is
nothing short of a miracle as the
truck he was driving turned a com
plete sommersault aud alighted in
ditch along side the road with all four
wheels in the air
Shortly after he regained his
senses Lawrence told the story of tho
accident to officials of the local hos
pital and to members Of the police
force. He placed the blame Of tho
mishap on an unknown woman drive,
who accompanied by three other
women was driving a Cadillac touring
car and while going very fast hog.
ged' the road causing La%renCe's
truck TO slide over IN embankment as
he turned to one side to let her pass
Lawrence had lust left the Moline
Consumers gravel pit west of Otta
wa and was coming to this city with
a heavy load of gravel in his machine !
as he neared the James OMeara F.
residence, opposite the bridge cross
ing the / e. NJ. Canal west of the |.
County home, he noticed the large /
touring car coming towards him. The |
car was travelling ut q very high rate .
of speed and was Keeping in the mid /
die of the road. When he reached a
point on the road about twenty feet .
way the Cadillac passed over the
bridge but made no attempt to turn .
over to one side in order that there .
might be plenty Of room for the cars
to pass each other. Knowing that # I
he didn't tun over to one side of the t
road collision might occur Lawrence .
quickly swered the gravel laden truck .
pirr al h, full
stop, Just as the car carrying tho !
women whizzed past him he attempt |
ed to start up at faster rate of
speed, hut the right front wheel sud,
denly sank into the sand along side .
the road and he was unable to stop it.
Before he had time to jump or save
himself from injury. the car was
plunging into the ditch and landed
up-side-down about fifteen feet below
A fellow workman named Buckley
who was driving another truck Of
gravel, and who was probably 100 feet
in back Of 14awrenCes machine first
did not notice the accident He had
seen the Ger driven by Lawrence a
head of him and had also seen the
Cadillac coming towards him His at
tention was then attracted to some
other direction and when he looked
up the road he did not see the truck
driven by Lawrence. He sped up and
soon saw the machine, upside-dOwn
along side the road in the ditch He l.
rushed to the O'Meara residence for
aid and in the meantime several
other trucks carrying gravel came
upon the scene of the accident
Lawrence was removed from the
wreckage and the police ambulance
Dr. Z. P Hathaway was
called on the case and Lawrence
.aien to the city hospital At the
time it was thought that he was suf-
fering from severe skull injury or
some kind Of spinal injury as a result
If the accident About 5 o'clock yes
erdav afternoon he regainet con
sciousness and further examinations
by physicians showed that he was not
INJURED severely. L.
His brother Ernest Lawrence Of
Peoria, III, arrived in this city last
night and both left for Peoria this
The machine according to reports
s not dana ged as seriously as first
reported, although the damage will
each approximately $3.50. j