Year: 1872

From the Detroit Free Press, July 20
| About half past ten o'clock yesterday
young man named Edward Clouticr
engaged in vanishing furniture On the
third floor of No "a Atwater street, met
with horrible death. The young man
has had great passion for gymnastics.
expecting to attach himself to circus
as soon as he became proficient While
working around the building he has used
all his spare moments in swinging from
beams turning handsprings and per
forming other feais calling for supple
ness and activity He was seen cling
ing to the main shaft Of the tvo hundred
horse power engine few daN ago and
was warned by bis employer nsvcr to
attempt the feat again. This shaft runs
along within thirty inches of the floor
and makes about one hundred and fifty
revolutions per minute.


| In the morning, yesterday, after fin
isling up table, Cloutier went to the
north end of the building and prepared
himself to perform some feat which lie
had studied up. Taking the tackle rope
which is used to hoist articles from the
alley below. he passed the free end over
the shaft. This much was ascertained
after his death, but bis further proceed
ings will never be known A boy was
working forty feet away and was first
alarmed by hearing C!outier call out !:


Stop the engiue-quick ~ Running
around. the boy saw that he was caugh;
in the folds of the rope and wound over
, the shaft. The boy ran. as did others,
but it was two or three minutes before
the engine could be stopped. and then
the victim was past help. As soon as
the rope lashed him close to the shaft
the Young man had to turn with it One
of his arms was caught roand the shaft
so that it drew his face and shoulder
close down, but left his limbs free to
pound on the floor.


| The noise of his feet striking the
boards was heard hals block away
above the hum of the machinery. His
boot heels tore strip off one of the
boards, and were then flung from his
feet clear across the room. His hat
went the other way. and his pants were
stripped off and thrown fifteen feet
away. After the boots flew off the
young man s bare feet W hirred tho aAnr
/ 800 or 400 times The feet we're mash
ed up to the ankles. so that they spread
ont like brooms. and looked like pieces
of bloody beef. The bones of the ankles
struck the floor until dents half an inch
deep were made i'll the boards. After
the tackle rope had been wound up its
full length. it had to snap, but this did
not let the victim loose After the en-
gine stopped Cloutier had to be cut loose
from the shaft. He gave a gasp as they
released him, but died as they laid him
down.


1 One of his arms was broken half a
dozen times. and, indeed. there was
hardly whole bone in his body His
legs were mere pulps. bis breast crushed
in. his ribs broken. and a worse sight
never was seen. The floor was covered
with blood and flesh, and the strongest
men shudders I as they looked. Coroner
Grau was called and jury was empan
neled. and verdict rendered on the spot.
( Tue verdict was that the deceased came
/ to his death while trying an experiment
with rope around shaft making l35
revolutions per minute- The verdict
was thus wOrded to make palmer the
fact that the young mans recklessnoss
brought about the accident.


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