Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1860-01-17

EXCITING SCENE IN A RAILROAD CAR-On
Thursday Of last week an accident happened
to passenger train ON the Pittsburg, Forte
Wayne and Chicago Railroad, by which sever
al persons were injured, but fortunately none
killed. The widow of the late Senator Linn
Of Missouri and daughter, Judge Delatield, of
Memphis, and a dozen others, who were in
the sleeping car, were thrown down an en-
bankment of thirty feet, the car turning over
several times, once over stake and rider
fence 1t took fire and burned up. A pas
senger furnishes the Pittsburg Chronicle with
the following account OF the accident:
After stating that the accident was OCCASION
ed by a broken rail, and that the locomotive
and baggage cars passed over safely, he says:
"The passenger car first meets the obstruction
and is thrown off the track. With its load of
human life, it is hurried over and over down
steep embankment on the adjacent fence. Its
inmates scramble out the stoves set it on fire,
and, abandoned to its fate, it is a beacon light
to what follows. Its flames throw over the ice
and snow a lurid glare That car is consumed
and the fence itself is in flames but, in Gods
Providence, not life was lost, and, save with
a few bruises only, the passengers escaped
uninjured. The sleeping car, last on the
train, was, by severe wrench, severed from
the passenger car and carried on with terrible
velocity. 1t struck the sleepers on which the
the rail is laid; it wavercd a moment or two,
and, suddenly leaning over, its impulses car
ried it forward, onward and onward, and over
the precipice. Down the precipice it turned
Zap attel leap 1t took; crash after crash came
broken glass, falling like rain among its occu-
pants, until, jumping over the fence, the car
stopped with all its inmates, sixty feet from
the fence, within field Crash was only sue
ceeded by terror. HelpP was cried, who
was there to help2 Those who had escaped
Oh. 4
gone on to the shelter of the baggage car still
on the track, with very few exceptions.
Picture to your minds eye that sleeping car
fallen on its side at that moment-all pros
trate The lamps extinguished, the smoke of
the overthrown stoves filling and sitting the
car, adding to its gloom, distraction and dan
ger. The cry of fire was raised, and followed
by the most terrible confusion, in the midst of
which lady was heard to cry, Help moth.
err will be burned !" The car was no. filled
with smoke, while all around was so dark that
nothing whatever could be distinguished.
The passengers knew not where they were,
or the extent Of their danger. AT length the
uoor was found and general rush made for
inc open air was made. Some few, however,
remained behind, and assisted in rescuing the
lazy before mentioned and her noble and cour-
ageous daughter from their perilous position.
III 'ile meantime, other cries for assistance
were heard young lad, named Eugene
service, only twelve years old travelling with
his widowed mother, finds her under the heat.
ed stove badly injured and threatened with
immediate death. Calmly, but promptly, he
drew his coat sleeve over his hand, and, rails
ing ms 1allen stove, rescued his frightened pa-
rent from death. Well may she he nroud of
that boy. She was helped out of the car badly
burned, and her teeth knocked out Another
young lady was carried out with her collar
bone broken. A mattress was spread upon
the snow, on which she was laid, and was pro-
tected from the extreme cold by coverlets has
tily thrown out of the car. Tho lady whose
collar bone was broken was Miss Lonsdale,
an actress. No one was killed. need only
add that the injured lady, first spoken of, was
the respected widow of Senator Linn, of Mis-
souri,. and that noble hearted girl, her daugh-
ter, Mary L. Burr.