Evening Star Newspaper, December 23, 1934, Page 75

BY HARRY BARSANTEE. T THE close of 1933 the annual story of that year’'s oddest accidents began with the strange case of the man who failed in his efforts to commit suicide, but died by accident in the attempt, thus achieving his objective anyway, Old Man Accident tried to repeat in 1934. A young man in Los Angeles, Wade Cun- ningham, became so despondent over a love affair that he decided to die. He turned on the gas in his home and sat down to write a farewell letter. When he finished he lit a cig- arette in the gas-filled room. An hour and a half later he woke up in a hospital and was informed that he had been blown through the walls, but still had a chance to live. Well, there you are. A fellow wants to die end death goes on a holiday. More often, of course, it is the other way around, but the Grim Reaper was conspicuous by his absence in a large number of the oddest accidents of 1934. He put the finger on one motorist, but Lady Luck took a hand in the affair and won. The man had gone out to his garage on a cold morning, closed doors, sat in the driver’s seat and started the motor running to get it warmed up. Deadly carbon monoxide fumes filled the garage. His head dropped and he lost consciousness. As his muscular control left him his body fell forward—onto the horn button. The klaxon sounded a long, steady blast, and though he did not hear it, his family did. They rushed into the garage and threw open the doors and win- dows. The life-giving air arrived in time to save his life. HEN her automobile went over a 178-foot ledge on Economy Mountain, near Truro, Nova Scotia, and turned 14 somersaults before bringing up against a tree, Mrs. Janet H. Ward, 68-year-old resident of Westville, N. J., escaped with minor cuts and bruises. Three-month-old Philip Romano of Jersey City was catapulted through the air when his baby carriage was struck by a skidding auto in front of his home. Baby and pillows went sail- ing. The pillows landed first and Philip landed on them—unscratched! William Weber, Chicago window washer, was scrubbing a pane of glass in the tower of the Sky Ride at the Wor)d's Fair when he was viciously attacked by a chicken hawk. He in- curred minor injuries. Firecrackers sometimes take life, but in one case in 1934 they saved it. Early on the morning of July 5 a motorist, traveling a dark road near Kenosha, Wis, found the highway suddenly lighted up by firecrackers tossed from a passing car. The glare outlined the form of a man, apparently dead, directly in his path. Jamming on his brakes, he stopped in time to avoid running over Harold Ager, 25, of Kenosha, who was not dead, but unconscious after having been struck by a hit-and-run driver. James Braswell, a 12-year-old Kansas City youth, fell under the wheels of a taxicab when he attempted to “hook” a ride. One wheel passed over his head and chest. He got up and skated home unhurt. The prize escape of the year, however, oc- curred in France, where 9-year-old Henri Guyot fell in a field of wheat, was swallowed up in the flying machinery of a wheat binder and came out neatly bound in a bundle. There wasn’t a scratch on him! A Pennsylvanian fell into a bathtub in 1933 and an Indianan fell out of one. Bert Phillips, Pittsburgh, had his bath rudely interrupted when, amid a shower of broken glass, a stranger dropped through the skylight into the tub beside him. Beulah Hopkins, Gary, Ind., stepped on a cake of wet soap, skidded across the bath room, shot out an open window, dropped three stories and plumped, unhurt, into a sand pile. HIT-AND-RUN dog was reported in Denver in 1933. In 1934 one was reported in Cleveland. His victim was Stephen Stana, 32, who received a serious back injury when the THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. €, DECEMBER 23, dog, frightened by an oncoming car, leaped against him and threw him to the sidewalk. Dogs, by the way, figured in an unusual num- ber of 1934’s oddest accidents. Albert Barrett of New Jersey got a fractured skull when a dog fell 10 stories and struck him on the head. Mrs. Arney Clutter, her young son and her brother, all of East Liverpool, Ohio, lost their lives when their pet police dog upset the boat in which they were riding. A lavish public kiss from her bulidog cost Evalyn Wright, St. Louis, a nice damage and repair bill. The kiss distracted Miss Wright, whose auto swerved against a new boulevard light post. The city asked $156.25 for the post and the garage man $73 to repair the car. Andrew Pelton, New York, snapped his teeth at his dog’s nose in play. Buster snapped back, and meant it, closing his teeth on his master’s nose. Pelton went to the hospital for treat- ment. Cupie, a Murphysboro, Iil, bulldog, killed himself. Left alone, he turned on all the gas jets in the kitchen range and was asphyxiated before help arrived. And cats figured in some curious accidents. Edward Miles, 6-year-old Indianapolis lad, played hide-and-seek with his cat. No matter where he hid, his pet would find him. Sud- denly Edward spied the empty refrigerator in the kitchen and climbed in, shutting the door behind him. Outside, the cat clawed the por- celain. Finally, the mother awoke and, amazed at the cat’s antics, opened the door. Edward bad suffocated. In Lepseny, Hungary, Mrs. Mihaly Kantor’s cat crept into the oven to find relief from the heat. Mrs. Kanton decided to do some baking and lighted the fire under the oven. Hearing cries of distress, she opened the oven door. A feline fire-ball, her fur blazing, raced madly through the house, igniting draperies in her flight. Minutes later, the house was in ashes. Similar to this was the experience of Mrs. Victor Barbaglia of Vineland, N. J. She went to the basement to tend the furnace fire. An oily rag caught fire and she tossed it aside without looking to see where it went. It landed on the cat's back, setting its fur ablaze. The cat dashed through the house with Mrs. Barbaglia after it; before the dash was over Mrs. Barbaglia’s gown caught fire and she was painfully burned, and $100 worth of dam- age was done to her home. Harvey Pontius, Kendallville, Ind., scratched a match on his trousers to light his pipe. The oil- soked pants burst into flame and were demol- ished before the fire was extinguished. A phy- sician dressed his badly burned legs. OMEWHAT similiar in embarrassing results was an industrial accident reported to the National Safety Council. A hose carrying oxy- gen and gas to the welding torches lay on the floor. A leak had developed in the hose right where the hero of this story was working. With no respect for his privacy, the gas quietly seeped right up his trouser leg. Sud- denly, there was an explosion, and ¢he pants blew off. There was no injury except to the worker’s feelings. Joseph Pittis, New Philadelphia, Ohio, over- turned in his car. More shaken than hurt, he crawled from the wreckage and began com=- piimenting himself on his escape. Then he caught the strains of a song from his dash- board radio set, still going despite the impact. 1934. Nine-year-old Henri Guyot was swallowed up in the flying machinery of a wheat binder—and came out, neatly wrapped up in a bundle, with~ out a scratch! Hearing cries of distress, she opened the oven door. ‘A feline fire-ball, her fur blaz. ing, raced madly through the house. Tt caroled consolingly: “I'll be glad when you're dead, you rascal, you.” A Southern Missourian drove a rambling wreck of a car along the highway. It rattled and wheezed, but kept going. There were no brakes on the car and as the driver tried to go around a curve, the car went through the fence and came to rest where it should have been all the time—in an auto junk yard! Justice was also meted out to the Wisconsin road-hog who, after weaving through traffic for many miles to the intense disgust of other motorists. failed to make a turn. His car cata- pulted through a fence and came to rest in an adjoining field. The road hog wasn't hurt much. As a matter of fact, he may have felt right at home when he operied his eyes and found himself mired in a nice soft hog wallow. Henry Shafer, Eldora, Iowa, might well be called “The Man of Many Mishaps.” His 1934 accident consisted of a fall on an icy sidewalk which put him in bed with a broken hip. It is claimed that Shafer during his 83 years has been struck by lightning, buried in a coal mine, fallen from a high trestle, blown into the air by cannon, buried under two tons of hay, fallen 30 feet over a cliff, thrown from a horse and dragged through a barbed wire fence, kicked by a horse, end fallen from a bobsled, with a fractured skull resulting. Then he sur- vived an attack of double pneumonia at 80, & stroke of paralysis at 81, and bruises and broken bones in two separate highway acci- dents in his 82d year. ISFORTUNE hit the Matt Beaver family, Logansport, Ind., three times in one day. Dana, 23, was operated on for appendicitis; Otto, 20, suffered three broken ribs when kicked by a horse, and the home burned while the family was rushing Dana to the hospital. Dr. August G. L. Rindler, Davenport, ¥owa, usually walked at night for exercise because he feared automobile traffic in the daytime. He was killed when struck by a hit-and-run driver shortly after midnight. In 16 years of blindness, E. A. Morgan, Tyler, Tex., peanut vendor, was never bothered by traffic. He suddenly gained his sight, but he finds he must close his eyes now to cross the street. Odd base ball accidents were few in 1934, but one occurred in Winnipeg. During a fast double play a ball struck Harold Bossard, shortstop, and knocked him unconscious. Then it rico- cheted and ,struck Mrs. Douglas Nichols, a spectator. Odd golf accidents were numerous, as usual. One golfer, whittling a ball to learn what was inside, found out to his sorrow. The ball ex- ploded, scattering acid, which ell but destroyed the sight of one eye. Another golfer made such a mighty swing that he threw himself to the ground, landing with sufficient force to break a leg. A third, after making a drive on the first tee, dashed toward a fence to sit down. He misjudged the distance and injured his spine in the result- ing fall. In 1932 we reported a bridge player who leaped from the table in exuberance after mak- ing a grand slam, and dislocated his shoulder. Last year a golfer became so elated over having sunk a long putt for a birdie that he attempted to execute a front flip. The flip was a flop, and Minutes later the house was in ashes. he fractured his ankle. His long putt, ore ™ presumes, was promptly forgotten. Another golfer was struck by a fellow player s club, which knocked his bridge work down h's throat. Still another was making some practice shots with a pipe in his mouth. The shaft of the club crashed against the pipe, knocking ‘G back into his mouth and breaking out two teetil, ILDING CLARKE, “iron man” of t:e British stage, died from a friendly slep cn the back. Gaston Richard, Parisian “hum:in projectile,” gave up his dangerous stunt in 1¢23 at the age of 53, because he felt he was too o'de He was. But friends insisted he perform once more last year and he agreed. He missed tne net by 16 inches and was killed. Gabriel Bernard, Parisian writer, has terrified thousands with his mystery books and plays Last Summer, a boy suddenly shoved a paint brush under his nose. M. Bernard apparently mistook it for a revolver and died of fright. Get prompt relief from pains with quick - acting “Ben-Gay"...it penetrates Stop that pain! Rub on “Ben-Gay,” the original Baume Analgesique. 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