New-York tribune., 1868-04-16
RAILROAD DISASTER.
FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT ON THE ERIE RAIL
ROAD

oN ruR ERIE. RAILWAY-FEARFUL LOSS OF
IIFE-LIsT OF THE KILLED AND WOUNDED
SCENES AND INCIDENrs-EXTRACT FROM
THE sUPERINTENDENTS REPORT-THE CAUSE
or THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS RAILS-THE
LATEST PARTICULARS.
At 315 o'clock yesterday morning as the 2:2O
Buffalo Express train No. u bound East, made up
Of ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS two baggage, postal two first
class and one seoondclass, three sleeping and one
ladies car reached Cars Rock, about sixteen miles west
of Port Jerys " Y, the was thrown from the
track The car thus thrown of dragged short distance
when the coupling between the fourth and fifth cars
breaking sleeping with the ladies car were
precptated embankment about 50 feet hgh Inc
slde OF the embankment was Jagged with roGhs her n
bowder, and when the cars, ater fOlinH oNSi - 49,
fal reached the bottom, IL broken wreck, neaP
Of spnters-sides, top, flooring, seats sha'tore" 'o
The nssse@Sers of that portion OF the train upon the
track and the unhurt survivors OF the eaTlu ar RE
down the embanment at once set 10 |oIk 10 6 the
wounded At this the ladies' car TOOK hIe & anG deaS
flames spreading rapidly, ITS wreoA, Sced @ 10 ashes
BY It's glare the dead and wounded WeIe yell tbo sIeen
hill and lald upon the mattresses taken hored Ipces
sanity extricaung bodies from the runs. Lne
Mr. Judd and the sngnee eGu Se head and the latter
seorched in endeavOrng 10 renove ho w pot Teryis
and evSryhug that could be done by the employees OF he
Company relieve the sufferers was a0he, "a. S bo
scene of the disaster At the point where the aeeden1
occurred the roadbed is cut on the OF tne Dun UNe
hanging the river The ledge on which the track runs s
very narrow, and the consequence was that te eas
which were thrown from the track by the snpposSiu
breaking OF rail were precpitated down an elhp"nA
A"'"' VI '' WV MR.. AMEs A PASSENGER.
The train left Buffalo at 22O M, III charge OF Oon
huctOr Judd aud Division superintendent Dougass,& & anu
consisted Of an engine enae ree % aDd pne ot9 car
The train time, and made the usual stopPdStt o.
Evening came and the seepngcar passengers retired 20
rest About 81 O'Clock in the morning, when near carr
Rock Charles H. Horton of the General FostOnoe III ~
this city and myself who were in charge OF tne p1s
nar saw the berope sraighen and then break III TWO.
The conductor said, have lost some cars We ran ~
the platform and saw four cars gong 9Ner & n STth
ment. The coupling between inc iouitn anu i it'l
ears had given away and down tne IotS tn
over jagged rocks and stones crashmg ana eatS' 9 ILL.,
went until the broken mass reached the BOTTOM Inc
resne S sn t6e wounded Some however stood
upOn the track and looked down upon the ighu sceno
asifthey were spell bound unable tOmOve Inc mOoIOse
and NV s eht we carried dead and wounded TO the top
of the hill and laid them out upon the mattresses VI
The head vet he Was uneeasng his efforts TO care for
the wounded. The ladies' car the iasI one o .ho y IAN &
entirely destroyed burning up seven or elght deau
impression prevails that the disaster was eaogo & ~
a broken rail which threw the rear car on inc track
This caused wrench upon the earsin front anu the COUP
ling breaking the whole four cars went over tue
The engineer was badly burned in endeavoring to res
ene the bodies from the burning 1t was the sent
non of Tie passengers that both the conductor and en-
sneer acted nOby satisfied that had u n0t peen lof
the earnest work Of OF the passengers the loss Of
life would have been much greater many would have
been burned to death Mr.. Horton was conspicuous III
'"' MR. NJ. A. BLAKEsLEE's STORY,
resident Of 9ean Maa oysP te e E
bankment 1 awakened by the sudden sl0pplhg@ @ W
the ears. There was wrench as 'ng nsn ffo T%S
breaking All was quiet IN the car yet sRang d uY h
my berth TO the floor just then the car was ai%ggeG M
the the others oyer o' Tne tbs a"or and held fast
the car went over and over 1 nhe otwsra Tsr ioOi
was about to rise when cle inner roof OF the car
came crashing down, and was held by broken frame.
dead and wounded, managed to cxtrcate myself from
the wreck The ladies' car was on e ana on eEes sTe
The up when the fire OF the car wens s OUT % anu
the passengers then began to exteste hbiS S ~ ihe
wreck Mr. BaReSlee declares that u was tae % lnosS
perfect wreck that could be imagined ho eunr eu and
enc ladies car. L counted hve deao HV1o SH1aG ard
a1teTWafd burned in the ladies' ear. and FIVE meS
dead bodies upon the railroad track. T Shouu Sried
were bonaSt down by the train 10 Port Jervis Was Was
told by friend Of mine, Mr. Porter that the @ ur" was
toid at Salamanca when embarked, that the 81 m h
then tny o %e near CORY Pass in up the
body Of mad 9een killed By TX n tEs morning
over speca train sent from NewYorFtO our assistance
We arrived in this city before noon Ct, ES,ScuANroy
was ln OF the forward cars Nneh nS % IRAN %s 5
fbe train stopped looked of the window and saw
that cars missing; win otners gUI v
~ the car and walked down the track We met conductor
Judd; he seemed thoroughly seh.possesSed 10 one one
brakeman he said "bng the red ights 10 inc 0er % 80
down 20 the embankment and helped carry mp the 0ead
and won5ded When the aecGet ny Gd mG sized the bell
rOpe and sprngng back upon the car, Went uo"n 'lo
necl9d srs at te sG scene The engineer M Green
also worked nOby The wounded were gwen tne Dcst Ol
care the place and hour Afforded tS n1aaSg & oS of rail-
saw il; it was broken in three places probably the
rail iS WAS dTeg The Ae eHcbe se with portion Of
the cars down to Port Jerys tranerred mails ana
baggage and returned for the wounded. My frlend Mr
Dunhan Of Bnghamton, must have been kea lstahlly'
his hreast was torn away and his head badly crushed
night and the terror
and confusion for time were appalling II was horre
sight increased by the agonzng shrieks OF the wooeo
MR. JOHN BEARDsAIL-
Mr. John Beardsal OF NOrwalk, Ohio, missed the train
10 which the accident happened and took the succeeding
one on his way this city On arriving at the scene OF
ake critical examination Of the track says there
not far as he could see any broken M ran to which
the injury happened was running at fearful rate OF
speed ana was rounding sharp curve at the @ Ie o. de
railroad companies, on their way 10 attehd
convention WHICH meets in this city to-day for
the purpose Of bringing about an e4nallatein Ton, % OF
freight rates. Among these were Mr. r. b. Pnbps;
FeSsns S the 6s sa%e roaG john
Agent of the Atlantic and Great western, ana MT g. N
PIns and Gray were in next 10 the last one Of
the train II went the embanknent and was crushed
ionsIy' with slight Injuries Notwithstanding the car
whe struck the bottom only mass Of debris they
lips suffered conusons on the head and face ana MI
Gray was though no te eas 10
he one Just mentioned Mr. Osborns injuries were slight
and mostly on the head but Mr. Looms, who sat In the
seat adjoining the one he occupied, was when
The search for the wounded was coinmeneeG' 1le Nl
Osborn who accompanied Mr. Beardsall 70
this city, last evening stopping at the o Ncho-
las Hotel Beardsau says he knows not how TO ac-
roup for catastrophe; but narrates the following
eolo0uy which occurred in his hearing between one OF
the drakesmen belonging 10 the injured train and q
friend: This latter addressing the tranhand remarked,
Im Won had better leave raiTOadng it's getting 10 be
daneefousT emo WON'T replied the brakesman. 'but
Will know better than TO go train again when so
Cured because our folks putting on airs they
wanted TO show Off they crowded all steam IN order