The Union Daily Times

Conway, Aug. 30.--The finding this afternoon of the body of Mrs. Marvin Conner, one of the six victims of the accident of early yesterday morning, was the only development in the Waccamaw river drawbridge tragedy today. The bodies of Mr. and Mrs. J. S. Culpepper and their three children, also drowned when the automobile in which they were riding with Mr. and Mrs. Conner ran off the open draw, were buried at Nichols today. Mr. Conner was the only survivor.

Mrs. Conner's body, for which a search had been continued ever since yesterday, was found floating in the stream half a mile below the bridge by a man named Watts, captain of the Conway Lumber company's tug boat.

Officials today continued their inquiry into the accident with a view to ascertaining how the drawbridge happened to be open. Two theories have been advanced, one that it was opened in malice and the other that a heavy wind that accompanied a rainstorm just before the accident had blown it open. The coroner's jury which is conducting a formal inquiry into the six deaths will meet again next Wednesday.

In the car at the time of the accident were Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Conner, J. Sutton Culpepper, Mrs. Culpepper, seven year old Lizzie Culpepper, four year old Gertrude Culpepper and two year old J. C. Culpepper. Mr. Conner alone escaped death. Mr. Culpepper's car had been ditched and Mr. Culpepper seriously injured and Mr. Conner was driving him to a doctor. It was some time past midnight and raining. Not until he was almost on the bridge did Mr. Conner see that the draw was open too late to stop. The heavy car plunged into 20 feet of water. Mr. Conner managed to get out but the others were lost. Several cars had passed across the bridge just a few minutes before the accident and the bridge was closed and apparently the drawbridge became turned in such a way as to precipitate the car into the river is unexplained but the theory that the bridge was left unfastened and that a severe wind storm just a few minutes before Mr. Conner came along blew it open is now believed to furnish the most plausible explanation of the accident. River men and others who use the bridge often say it is not unusual for the wind to move the bridge a foot or more depending on how much slack is in the chain holding it. Perry Quattlebaum of the Quattlebaum Light and Ice company, who has charge of the opening and shutting of the bridge, testified before the coroner's jury that the bridge had not been opened since Monday morning when the steamboat Malone passed through.

Evidence brought out at the inquest suggested the possibility that the bridge had been turned by parties driving a Ford automobile which had struck the Culpepper car a mile or two before the bridge was reached, the theory being that the bridge was turned in order to delay pursuit or avoid detection. Inquiry so far made has revealed little to bear out this supposition.

The Culpepper and Conner families had spent the day at Myrtle Beach and were returning to their homes in two automobiles, the Culpepper car being driven by Willie Culpepper and being perhaps a half mile in advance of the car driven by Mr. Conner.

On the embankment a short distance beyond the bridge, Willie Culpepper began to slow down his car so that Mr. Conner would catch up with him. Mr. Culpepper realized he had got too close to the edge of the side of the road and turned his car back toward the center of the highway. At this juncture a Ford touring car having only one front light attempted to pass and struck the front wheel of Culpepper's car, turning it over into the ditch on the side of the embankment.

A few minutes later the car occupied by Marvin Conner drove up, and the Culpepper family immediately entered that car with Mr. Conner to come to Conway for medical assistance for J. S. Culpepper.

Willie Culpepper and other members of the party followed on foot. He was close enough to hear the car when it hurtled into the river, Willie Culpepper testified, and running to the spot, found that Marvin Conner had made his escape, the other occupants of the car being still on the bottom of the river.