Palatka daily news. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1919-1994, 1922-10-27
BRUbAKER FEARED
He WOULD SUFFER
AS STR|KEBREAKER
"They Have Got Me, :"
He Said as Car Crushed
Out His Life
STORY BEFORE CORONER
Development of Testi-
mony Hints at Crimi-
nal Negligence

"Orin Brubaker came to his dealt
on October "a by being caught unde,
the wheels of a bad-order gondol;
car on which he was working ant
which had been forced on him by an
other car being kicked on the same
track, said accident being due to fail
jure to display proper signals" This
was the rather indefinite verdict re.
turned by the coroner's jury yester.
day afternoon after several days OF
investigation of the deplorable acci-
dent which took away the husband
and father of a wife and four chill
dren last Tuesday in the Atlantic
Coast Line yards. But was in, the
trend Of the testimony that intima-
tions appeared of a possible intent to
fix responsibility on other employees
Of the road for the accident, accident
al or Intentional
Lord, have mercy on my wife and
kiddies. They have been after me
and they have got me-" G. W. Black,
a witness before the coroner's jury
testified he heard Mr.. Brubaker say
as he lay pinioned with the heavy
car wheels crushing his life out.
viii Jackson, another witness, and
a former employee of the Coast Line
shops, testified that he quit his job
as non-union worker because 81 was
afraid they would jam me-" and my
work did not seem to be satisfactory
to the train crews" When question
ed what he meant by this he said
that because he was not a member
of the union.
VOIuminOus Testimony.
Both the railroad and relatives of
the deceased were represented by
counsle during the coroner's investi-
cations, and the testimony adduced
was voluminous and exhaustive in
detail. 1t will cover more than a
hundred typweritten pages. The
witnesses examined were Richard
Proctor, A. Billiter, j. C. Webb, J. E.
Butler, W. O. Alexander, W. N. Hol-
ingsworth, Mrs. j. H. Smith, Clyde
COX, H. R. Rich, DR.. George E.
Felch, F. A. Brooks, j. r. Zetroue.
!. E. Butler, G. W. Black and T. W.
Baxter.
The jury was taken over the entire
abroad yard whene the accident oc-
urre dTuesday. 1t was shown that
dr. Brubaker was working under a
ar in long string that had been
let in on the line leading from the
jarr street switch to the Coast Line
The particular car un-
Ter which he'was working was about
90 yards from the switch, but par
.lIeled the main line, down which the
witch engine went to "kick" in an
ther car on the siding with the 9TH
r disabled cars. Testimony was
AIKEN as to whether the train crew
ould see man under these cars or
lot- either from the main line as they
ven, down, or from the switch when
hey shunted the car in.
It was also brought out that when |
vvr workman is under a car max |
ng repairs he is supposed to have a |
'reen flag out to notify train crews. |
t developed that no such flag was
ut, and the train crew maintained |
hat they had no idea that anyone
7as at work under the cars. Rail- |
Dad men generally expressed the |
pinion that had the green flag been !
ut the accident would never have
The jury was composed of Mallory
'anfOrd, w. W. Walker, T. R. Hig-
ins, W. C. Gum, A. W. Brooks and
Will Squire.