THE TRAGEDY AT DEAD MAN'S CURVE
Printed in the Franklin Junior High Journal,
October 19, 1928, Vol.II, No. 3
“Well, Jim, its up to you to get him out of here”, said the chief of police. “If we don’t get him out in five minutes the mob will be here and we’d stand no chance in this one-story jail. I don’t blame them but orders are to stop lynching at any cost”
“All right, chief, I’ll take my motorcycle because it’s the fastest thing we’ve got”, replied Sargeant O’Brien as he strapped on his gun. The rushing mob of men was within half a block of the jail when the motorcycle with the prisoner strapped to the side car sped on its perilous way. It was no wonder that the mob wanted the prisoner’s life, for had he not murdered the mayor’s young, pretty wife whom everyone loved.
“Well, he would pay for his hideous crime with his life anyway. So why let a mob hang a man in cold blood and therefore have a heavy crime on their otherwise innocent shoulders”, mused O’Brien as he put the miles behind him.
Leaders of the mob were pursuing him now in powerful cars, but could never catch up with his fast Harley-Davidson. He slowed down to take the turn on the dangerous Dead Man’s Curve a quarter of a mile ahead. This curve had cost many lives. The road made a short turn around a bend in the river on a fill of white sand that sloped down to the water below.
Just as they rounded the bend the prisoner jabbed his knee into O’Brien’s arm causing him to lose control of the motorcycle. The machine swerved into a boulder, smashing it to pieces and hurling the side-car with the prisoner over the edge of the road. The officer was thrown against the boulder and was badly injured. The mob arrived just in tim to see the prisoner, clutching wildly with his free hand, go sliding down to a watery grave.
This story was printed when Sam was in 7th Grade, at age 14.
An article about Student Radicals in Southeastern Idaho by Merwin "Bob" Swanson appeared in Idaho Yesterdays in 1976 and featured stories about Sam.
