This article, from the San Francisco Chronicle, Friday, March 15, 1901, describes an accident at Union and Polk in which a Presidio and Ferries cable car killed Paul William Hack, a disabled veteran. 1713 Washington street, the dairy farm he worked at was between Polk and Van Ness. The receiving hospital may have been Harbor Emergency Hospital.
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From the San Francisco Chronicle / Friday, March 15, 1901. Page 12.
SOLDIER DRAGGED
TO DEATH BY CAR.
Because, stiff from infirmities contracted in the Philippines while service his county, Paul William Hack, a discharged soldier, was a little slow in getting on a Union-Street cable car yesterday morning he was dragged to death between the trailer and dummy, suddenly started up by the impatient gripman. Hack died at the receiving hospital four hours later. William Lubben, the gripman was arrested on a charge of battery and bailed out before Hack's death was known.
Hack was a corporal in Company C, Twenty-First Infantry. He was discharged a few weeks ago on account of rheumatism contracted in his campaigns. He secured a position in the Holstein dairy farm, 1713 Washington street. Three days ago he fell from a horse while at work and was given a few days'leave, as his fall had aggravated his lameness.
Yesterday morning, accompanied by D. T. Leary, one of his comrades in arms, ex-corporal in the same company and regiment in which he had served, Hack started for the Presidio. Leary is lame also from rheumatism and has not been yet discharged from the Presidio Military Hospital. The two friends started to get on a Union-street cable car at the corner of Polk Street. It was then that the accident happened.
Leary tells the story as follows: "We were going out to the Presidio. We stopped a Union-street cable car at the corner of Polk street. We were both lame, Hack worse than I. As I got on the dummy, I yelled to the gripman, who seemed ready to start off. 'Wait a minute, now; we're both lame.' I had hardly uttered the words when the car started up with a jerk, and Hack, who had just caught the rear pillar of the dummy, was whirled around and thrown underneath the trailer. The car went fifty yards before it was stopped. I jumped off and pushed the car back so that Hack could be picked up. I've seen many awful things in war, but never anything so bad as this."
At the Receiving Hospital, where Hack was taken, it was found that his skull was fractured, his right arm broken, his back and shoulders literally flayed and that he was also injured internally. He lingered till 3 o'clock in the afternoon.
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