The Wyandot pioneer. (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1853-1868, 1868-04-23
THE LATEST HORROR
The Last Railroad Slaughter
Full Description of the Disaster

Full Description of the Disaster.
Carr's Rock is sixteen miles from
Port j Jervis and overhangs tributa-
ry of the Delaware, the scenery of
which in this neighborhood is al
most Alps like in abruptness OF
outline. The cliff itself is from two
to three hundred feet in height,
lbelted about midway with narrow
ledge or heightened table, upon
which the track is laid-the table
being quite too narrow for any sort
of possible safety in case Of acci-
dent. The rock is of the craggy
order which trap ridges usually as
sumo, being, moreover exceedingly
steep and precipitous, an idiosyn-
cracy so peculiar to the valley of
the Delaware in this region that it
has developed into sort of a pro-
verb that one may live in the val
ley of the Delaware and only see
the sun at noon. The bluff in ques-
ton evcrhangs the river so jutting
ly that only a very narrow bottom
intervenes at it's base, the railroad
track winding around the noun
tain about one hundred feet from
its base, or possibly a little less.
The train in connection with
which the accident occurred had
left Buffalo at twenty minutes past
two on the afternoon of Tuesday,
and consisted of three sleeping cars,
two first class cars, one second class
car, postal car Of the pattern used
on the road for the distribution of
mails, a baggage car; and the ten
der and engine in the reverse of the
order in which they are mentioned.
Conductor Judd, and Charles
Douglas superintendent of the di-
vision, accompanied the train; Mr.
James and Mr.. Horton, of the Post
Office Department in this city, be-
ing on board the postal car. The
train had proceeded on time, ma
king the usual stoppages-so runs
the official bulletin, though it is al
legged in some quarters that it was
behind time, and was running at a
rapid rate to make up-and the
passengers had nearly all retired
for the night. 1t was now ten min
utes of three o'clock in the night,
and Conductor Judd and the two
Postoffice officials were quietly con-
versing in the postal car, when one
of the officials observed the bell
rope straighten suddenly as if with
a strong pull at the further end, and
then fall loose again as if it had
been broken by the suddenness of
the jerk. Conductor Judd inpedi-
ately remarked that they had prob
ably lost the rear cars and the
three ran to the platform just in
time to get sight Of the four rear
cars plunging headlong down the
side of the bluff. A tipping, top
ping for an in infnitesinaal second
on the edge Of the ledge, and then,
over, over, over, with overs enough
for a paragraph, rolled che four to-
g9ther, striking the bottom with a
dull heavy crash. Out of sight !
and from creatures out Of sight, up
from the inky darkness came shrieks
and intermitting groans. Over for
the distance of one hundred feet,
the four vehicles, freighted with
seventy five human beings, plunged
and tumbled and jolted, until, in the
interval Of about half a minute they
landed upon the low bottom land
by the river. The whole was pos
sibly the work of ten seconds-not
more-and as speedily as possible
the engine was brought to a stand
and an examination of the extent
of the accident was made. Down
the bluff, having given the alarm,
rushed conductor and assistants,
while in the meantime, the rear car
of the four had taken fire from the
embers scattered from the stove and
was blazing like great will-o'-the-
wisp in the fogs below. In the
meantime, also, messenger was
sent to the nearest telegraph sta
ton, and word was sent to Port
Jervis and assistance requested.
The demand was responded to as
soon as convenient, in an extra
tram, which proceeded with all nee
essary implements, armed and equip
ped, to the scene Of the disaster.
With the feeble help on hand the
conductor and assistants did what
they could before further assistance
came to the rescue, their first atten-
ton being given to those who ex
hibited signs Of life. With a groan
one dragged himself out from be-
meath the rubbish, pant Of which
was human and part Of which was
human workmanship; another beg
ged piteously for help; another
shrieked with the pain Of Commissions
just beginning to be realized, the
poor bruised Individual having been
half stunned with half hundred
conclusions, each more violent than
the preceding. 1t is stated, how
ever, more hopelessly sad than all
the rest, that the greater part of the
injured, so utterly bewildered were
they, seemed thoroughly and for a
few minutes to have lost all sense
of identity, and were seconds in com
pretending the situation even after
they had been rescued, though
gradually they recovered their wits
and had strange tales to tell Of how
jolt and how all lights went out in
the car, snd how they found them
selves whirling dizzily over and
over, with now and then a crash as
the car rolled over boulder, which
pricked a hole in it's side only to
let in little damp and cold air and
a darkness quite as dense as that
which was whirling over and over
with seventy-fve human beings