The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-12-28
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2S, 1857.
Railroad Disasters and the Methods of
Avoiding Them.


Avoiding Them.
THE press of the country is very generally
discussing the recent terrible railroad disaster
which occurred at Angola, N. Y, with view
to suggesting such improvements in our pre-
sent system Of cars, engines, ETC., as shall
prevent the recurrence of similar caIamities in
the future. The suggestions made cover a
wide field, and serve to show how very defeo-
tive and imperfect many of our present
arrangements are. Some of the improve
ments proposed relate to the construction and
arrangement of car wheels, so that the fracture
Of a single one shall not be.suficient to throw
the cars from their track; others relate to the
matter of brakes, so as to give the engi-
neer full and prompt control of his train
without dependence upon the move
ments of brakesmen others again
relate to the construction of strong parapets to
bridges, so that the running off of train, or
of car, should be impossible; still others
relate to the material and construction OF cars,
so as to guard against that most appalling of
all dangers-the liability to burning up in the
case Of an accident involving the partial de-
mOlition of car We think this last is the
most practical of all the reforms urged. No
amount of care in the construction ofroads and
rolling stock, or in the running of trains, can
do away with the liability of cars to run off of
the track. 1t is one of those contingencies
which cannot be avoided. The breaking of
rails or of wheels when under the influence of
frost will continue to happen, and will always
be attended with the liability to throw cars
from the track, and sometimes down declivities
and embankments where the destruction of
the car is inevitable. Here the true policy is
to guard as much as possible against the re-
sulting dangers, and of these, as our cars are
at present constructed, the most appalling is
that of fire. Where car is thrown down an
embankment, as in this case at Angola, striking
end foremost, the effect is to precipitate the
passengers seats, broken woodwork, and
stoves, all into one mass at the end of the car.
Almost instant combustion is the result. In
tn examination before the Coroner concerning
the Angola disaster, one witness testified that
he reached the car from his house in less than
half minute from the time it plunged
down the embankment, and saw the Goals
of fire from the stove scattered all over
the car. The terrible destruction of human
life in this case was due clearly to the pre-
sence of the stoves. Some were doubtless
killed and many wounded by the tremendous
conoussion of the car as it plunged to the
bottom of the bridge, but the greater number
of deaths was oocasioned by the conhagration
which instantly swept through the debris of
the wrecked car. And as regards stoves,
while their presence in a car at all is to be re-
pretended, yet if they are to be there, they
ought to be arranged with special reference to
guarding against the perils of fire in cases of
accident. The stove doors should be securely
locked, and the stoves themselves securely
strapped to the sides and floor of the car,
so that their detachment would be
next to impossible. A safe method
would be to obtain heat from furnaces
located beneath the car, as is customary on
some roads. In case of the breakup of a car
thus arranged, there would be but little liza
bility of the Goals of fire being being scattered
Immediately among the passengers. But the
true reform is to discard all these methods of
heating, and to resort to steam pipes passing
from car to car. This would accomplish the
desired result much more perfectly, and would
avoid the dangers of fire altogether The
method of heating cars by stoves is most un-
philosophical and unsatisfactory. The floors
are always cold, while the upper part of the
cars is unoomfortably hot. Indeed, as between
the present method of heating with Stoves
and doing without them altogether, trusting
to extra clothing for warmth, we believe that
the comfort of passengers would be consulted
by the latter.
The frequency of railroad accidents, and the
appalling loss of life they are occasioning
must result in turning the attention of legis-
lative bodies to the matter, unless the mana
gers of railroads shall themselves seek out
and apply the proper remedies The risks
of railroad travelling are large enough at the
best but the public has right to demand
that those risks shall be made as few and slight
as possible
Fenianism IrrepressibIe.
FENIANIsM seems to be farther than ever from