Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1861-09-20

We are all anxious to get hold of some
Muscatine papers as we have not seen but one
or two for more than month. We will pro-
badly stay here for short time and would
be pleased to receive one occasionally, SO that
we would know what YVES going on in Musca-
tine. We would be glad to hear from you all
at any time. CAPT. J. G. REED,
SERa'T. NJ. T. WILLIAMS
P ST. would say that Capt j. G. Reed
is acting as Major Of the "Bloody Seventh"
Iowa Volunteers. NJ. T. w.
The Late Bridge Dfsastcr.---Death
Of Barclay COppOc.
From our own Correspondent
LvAvENwoRTH, Kansas, Sept. 6, 1861.
Since our departure from Muscatine we
have experienced some rough campaigning |
Leaving that place at noon Thu sday, we
reached Quincy the next day at four o'clock,
p NJ, intending to 60 through to st. 10. by |
Saturdays train, but owing to trouble along
the line, no train left Quincy until Monday,
when we went out about twenty miles and |
were stopped by two men belonging to a
freight train which had preceded us. This |
train had been stopped by the rebels. They
had partially destroyed a small culvert, reno.
wing the timbers and leaving the rails in their
places; and in that manner threw off the train
all of the hands escaping. Wewere forced to
return, and having changed cars at Palmyra,
we went into Hannibal instead of Quincy.
Tuesday at IL o'clock, we made fresh
start and got within eight miles of ST. Joseph
when our train met with most horrible dis
aster. The scoundrcls had burned the Platte
River bridge, and our whole train was plung-
a .vk.> h., f1.,,yn hair oE obn,,
thirty feet, while running at full speed.
will only attempt to give description Of
the wreck as saw It. 1t was half past two
at night l had been lying down all the even
ing, ON scat Immediately in the left hand
rear corner of the first passenger car. We
had passed the last station and tne conductor
was collecting the tickets, and in pulling mine
out of my hat had awakened me- l straight
encd up and had just got in sitting position
when | heard crash, and felt myself falling,
1t seemed, to an inteminable depth. Down,
down, and then for an instant, all was dark
and silent as the grave Then followed a
scene that can never be described The air
rcsounded with groans, cries, screams, curses,
prayers and ordinations of every possible
character. Being at the rear end of the Car,
there was but little rubbish fell upon me, and
got up with seemingly no great effort and
jumped through window to the ground, fol-
lowed by Oliver Smith of SpriEgdale Our
first work was to help man from the hind
car who told us he was not hurt but could
not get out Right under him we found
woman who was struggling hard for relief; We
helped her down, she was badly wounded. By
this time the fire from the burning bridge
timbers was kindlng in the rubbish of the
cars We tore off the oil cloth covering
which was hanging from the top of the cars
and smothered out the fire, and then made
our way to the forward end of the wreck,
where we found three or four others hard at
work. AS fast as we got out the victims we
carried them to small sand bar in the river
where we laid them down, and then ripped
open valises and carpet sacks and took the
clothing for their wants. In this manner we
managed for the four hours that passed before
we got help to get all the wounded out, and
had them as comfortable as possible which of
course was poor enough. The dead were
left where we found them until the t, ain came
up from St. Joseph with fresh hands. Thir
teen were taken out dead and two died before
daylight.
Among those instantly killed was Lieut.
Barclay Coppoc Sd Kansas Volunteers, Lieut.
Travis, I'd Kansas, and Mr.. G. Fording of
West Liberty. Lieut.. Shaw, Kansas I'd, died
about 3 o'clock in the morning. DR.. Horton,
of Atchis On, a U. S. Surgeon, was killed, as
also all the train hands excepting the mail
agent and train boy.
The bridge was from $50 to 200 feet in
length, and from the rail to the water fully
thirty feet. The engine went clear of the
abutment about thirty feet, turning over end
ways The baggage car shot CHAR over and
little to the left Of the engine, the first coach
struck the baggage car fair in the end, and
the rear swung off to the left turning partially
over; the last coach struck the first about a
third way back, and the rear end remained
on the rail, the engine and bridge timbers
keeping the whole mass out of the water.
The bridge had been fired at the east end
and appears TO have fallen as soon as the ends
of the timbers were burnt off. There was
space of about fifteen feet between the wall
and the water, and out about 20 or 25 feet
was a sand bar where most of the wounded
lay.
A messenger started Immediately for Saint
10. for help, and when returning with a train,
found another bridge on fire which they had
to put out and repair before they could get to
US.
! This is the way these Missouri devils, head
ed by their Greens and Fosters are going to
fight U.s. For the sake Of killing a few SOL
diers, women and children, and even their
own men, must be mangled in this manner. |
heard one man who could not possibly live,
declare he was 'seceshor," but could not be-
licve that this was any work Of theirs. That
| it was, however, cannot be doubted, for after
| daylight man came to us who lived close by,
and said he saw the bridge fall at 5 o'clock in
the afternoon, but thought there would be no
train along and gave no notice. apt Car
penter, all mangled as he was, and laying
helpless on the ground, heard the fellows
heartless speech. and tried with his broken
arms to get at his pistols. He could not use
them, but he told the man that a score ofsuch
curses as him would swing for that job.
There were about los persons on the train
of whom think not one escaped entirely I'M
hurt. OF our company of seven, five are
left, who are not severely injured. have not
a scratch and thought I was not hurt at all,
but found some bruises after nights rest.
The bodies of Coppoc and Fording were
brought to this city and buried yesterday
with military honors.
Our party will leave here probably tomor-
row, for Fort Scott, where we expect to join
our regiment.
Yours &C., ELI H. GREGG.
For the Journal.
am glad to see that the Republican nomi-
nees for the county offices have appointed
meetings at which to meet and address the
people, The candidates are all so we'll known
that it would seem hardly necessary for them
to canvass the county, and the question of the
day is presumed to be well understood by all. |
Yet the custom has become so thoroughly fix
ed, that the candidates will be expected to visit |
different parts of tie county; and there may