The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-11-30

oxy gen, TO start With, by two stoves The effects
must be deadly In the extreme especially upon
those who often use them. And yet, strange
TO say, you rarely hear passengers complain.
They seem TO sleep right through IL all with the
utmost unconcern. did see one lady, how
ever, on this train, who gave up her state
room after she had taken It,, and changed for
an open section, because the state room was
too confined.
The fact seems to be that the mass OF
people who travel and arc able to sustain
the extra expense of sleeping cars. are not suni.
ciently accustomed to properly ventilated
sleeping rooms at home to be conscious of the
terrible waut OF ventilation ia tho cars. Tue
true remedy is to SO build the cars that ventila-
tion snail be iufallbly secured, Independent of
the passengers or attendants. Here Is n cnance
fer the inventive genius of Mr.. Leeds, OF our
city, whose admirable leceures upon the ventt
latiCn of houses ought to be more widely cir
culated among the masses. If people lived in
well-ventilated houses, they could not en-
dure without a protest our illy.ventilated
cars. The present method of heating railroad
cars is also inefficient, and unphilosophical
TO the last degree. A stove at each end of the
car merely warns the air in the upper section
of the car, about the passengers neads, while
the floor is left almost as cold as though there
were no fire at all. What is wanted is some
method by which the floor, or the passengers
feet, shall be heated. Until that Is done, the
heating of railroad cars Will have to be put on
par with their ventilation.
speak of these matters because there are no
people who travel so much as Americans do,
and Intelligent criticism is what our railroad
managers need. Our railroads have many ex-
cellent features, but in some respects they might
be vastly improved.
We passed through good part of Ohio in the
night and should have made Fort Wayne, Ind,
for breakfast; but towards morning we came to
a prolonged and ominOus halt. The unusual
stiffness, like that of a boat which has made
her port while you were asleep, awolSe the pas
sengers, and in response to the usual buzz OF
inquiries as to what was tle matter, we were
informed that there had been u smash-up,
caused by the collision of couple of freight
trains, and that The track was obstructed
that 1t would require several hours to remove
the debris so as to allow us to pass. A visit to
the wreck confirmed the statement. The acci-
cent had occurred in this wise:-A freig 1T train
going East had stopped at Il small station
called MonrocYille 10 take on lot oi
/ hogs. The station, IL seems, was not regular
stopping place, but merely switch for taking
! and leaving freight AS occasion might require
! Another freight traiu following the first was
! not notified of this stoppage and, running
along at full speed ran into the rear of the first
while 1T was taking on the stock, and made d
| tramenCous wreck Several of the hogs were
killed, cars were smashed, whirled around
across the track, run into and on top of one
another, corn scattered for rods along the road
! aud q genuine smash up made Fortunately nc
person was injured. Fhe responsibility for the
az cident seemed to be divided between the
telegraph operator at The station blclz, who had
| neglected to in form the following train of the
stoppage of the other at Monroeville, and the
conductor of the train which stopped in omit
! ting TO send back fiagman TO guard the rear.
AS the railroad company must have lost seve
raj thousand dollars by the accident, presume e
1t will fix the responsibility somewhere. Had
1t been passenger train thus run into, the loss
oflife would have been fearful, and perhaps as
horrible as that of few days since on one of the
reads leading into Cincinnati where several
! persons were burned death. After about
! five hours delay the IL ok was sufficiently
cleared to allow us to pass and we sped on our
way. We arrived in Chicago after all the
! Saturday trains on connecting roads for points
beyond had left, much to the dis lppo1n tment OF
some of our passengers, who had hoped TO spend
the Sabbath with their families but were OBJ
| liged TO stay over in Chicago.