The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1880-10-30 00:00:00

FATAL RAILWAY ACCIDENT IN

NEW ZEALAND.

' J. H. G." sends us (The Times) from Westward Ho the
following letter from his son, dated "Wellington, New
Zealand, September 12," describing a sad railway accident
which occurred on the previous day upon the line between
Masterton and Wellington

"I came down here yesterday with the intention of
seeing the Bishop. I have to thank God that I am
alive. On the incline on the Wairurapa side of the
Rimutaka-hill, where the central rail line is, the entire
train, consisting of two carriages and guards' van,
were blown over by the terrific wind. The Fell
engine (central rail) kept the line, or we should
, have all gone smash to the bottom of the gully.
We most of us owe our lives, under Pm-
vidence, to the great weight of the Fell engine; any
ordinary engine would have gone. We were being
shoved up the hill, two passenger carriages in front,
then guard's van, and last engine. The front carriage
went to pieces, the nearly flat roof being the only
thing left at all whole. One carriage and guard's
van around down the steep slope on their sides; we
all in the roof and end until they found their
bearing, brought up by the couplings, which merci-
fully held. There we were, part way down a steep
slope. I was under every one, being in the corner
that was lowest when we finally rested. Our heap got
gradually sorted, and I was very thankful to get right
end up, without a scratch, saving even my spectacles.
On looking through the next compartment we
saw that the other carriage was gone. I made my
way through the next compartment, where no one
seemed to be much damaged, and then down the slope
carefully to the debris below. The wind was terrific.
A boy about twelve started running down the slope,
and went away out of sight like a sky-rocket. While
his mother was looking after him she forgot to count
her other heads. They presently missed a younger
child, and found it dead under a cushion (smothered).
The boy escaped unhurt. I made my way down
more steadily, lyi:ig down occasionally, the stones
on the loose slope blowing like hail. The first
group I came to were two girls, motionless. I
made my way past 'them to the creek, soaked
my handkerchief, and went up to them again. One
I saw was past all help; the other I mopped away
at till she came round, only, poor girl, to turn over
and find her sister (twin, I believe) dead. I and
another man carried the living one away to a little
patch of grass among shrubs. Another child, a boy,
lay far up the slope, and alcray by himself; it was no
good looking at him. Another poor boy, brother, I
believe to the last, and friends of the girls, had very
bad scalp wounds; we took him down alongside the
girl. There I saw the flat roof of the wrecked
carriage go over with the wind on top of some one
in the bottom of the gully, and found a young fellow,
arm dislocated, otherwise all right. An old man
from Masterton, that he had pulled from under
the roof, was completely sc:alped as to the
front part of his head. These were under a culvert
in safety. We presently got the bpy (the • adven-
turous one) in. There they crouched In the running
stream. I went out again, and a man on the slope
beckoned for help; he was quite conscious, though
his leg was.injured, or back. He seemed quite help-
less. We got him down near the girl. We then got
cushions and padded pieces of carriage for their heads.
Meanwhile, 1 suppose, the railway people had made
their way up and down line, and telegraphed disaster.
Presently an engine-driver came down. He took the
little boy with the scalp wounds, I giving him a hand
occasionally—the uninjured youth accompanying him.
Just as we started we saw a special from Featherstone
arrive, but stop short of the catastrophe, fearing the
wind, but the men in her made their way along the
line. We went scrambling among logs, &c., round a
steep spur, holding on for the gusts to pass till we
gained the line above a tunnel, just below which the
disaster occurred. There we met other railway people
coming down the line from the summit. Tliese took
the two boys back through the tunnel to the carriages,
where the ladies still were. There were now plenty
of people, so I made my way up the line, through the
tunnel, to the summit, then down the line to Ratoke,
seven miles, nearest telegraph station, and telegraphed
my safety to my wife. Three dead, about 16 hurt,
seven of whom badly."

INCREASE IN THE EXPORT OF JUTE. —ln 1829 the
export of jute from Calcutta was twenty tons only,
worth about twenty pounds. Now the quantity ex-
ported annually is three hundred and fifty thousand
tons—nearly two million bales—valued at about six
million pounds sterling. This large quantity does
not include the enormous supplies retained for us in
India.