The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1869-07-22
SHOCKING RAILROAD ACCIDENT-EIGHT
PERSONS ROASTED TO DEATH.


PERSONS ROASTED TO DEATH.
One olthosc horrible occurrences so frequent
Of late by which human beings are hurried
out Of the world by the most terrible OF deaths,
happened on the New York and Erie Rail
road Oh the night Of the 18th. a passenger
train ran into freight train standing on the
track wrccking the locomotive and smashing
The cars together in Il general ruin. The
ears took fire from the lire-boX of the locomo-
live. by which six or eight passengers were
burned to death.
Mr. Gibson, of lcomnster, Mass, who
WAS a passenger ON the train at the time the
accident occurred, describes it as follows =
left Jersey City on the evening of the
lth, III the G.30 express train bound West.
There were quite Il number OF passengers on
board. Everything went right until we near
ed Mast Hope about / 40 O'Clock that night.
Vt that point the freight train going West
WAS waiting our approach, but had not cross
ed the switch. that we might pass on
Through the carrlessness of its engineer, the
engine attached to the freight train stood on
The frog on switch and partly on our line. Be
mo unaware of this, on our train rushed at the
rate OF thlrty-tvc miles an hour, and before
we We're aware OF it we struck the freight en-
cine with terrific crash The engine Of the
rNpre>Strain was thrown from the track and
overturned Its baggage car was also knock
cd of the track and at the same time driven
into the smoking car Immediately behind it.
In this ear We're some eighteen or twenty per-
sons. all German emigrants, and one New
\ ork gentleman. The terrible shock Of the
collision was the first intnlation the passen-
GERS in the other cars had of the disaster. OF
course the motion of the train being stopped
ny the upsettin9 of its engine, all had time to
Get out We did so. and Immediately went
10 the smoking car and there most horrible
spectacle greeted Us. The rear end of the
baggage ear was driven into the fore end of
the smoking car. crushing the eight passen-
gers who occupied seats in that part of it. SO
firmly wedged and ,iammed beneath the wreck
were they that We could not render them the
slightest assistance. There the unfortunate
beings lay grooming and bcseeching us in the
most hcart-rending accents to free them from
lheir horrible prison. We strove hard to do
80, bat having no axes or bars, our efforts
We're useless and unavailing. TO increase
The horrors Of the situation, the baggage car
caught fire and burned rapidly, the forked
tongues of the spreading flames already lick
me and singing the mutilated limbs Of the
poor creatures This confia grafton which
was caused by the scattered embers from the
engine. made us rcdoublc our efforts to save
the victims. We approached the car and at
tempted again and again to remove the brok-
en seat and timberS, bur it was no use. Here,
Wed@ed in his seat by the heap of broken
tlmbcr, sat Rev. Mr.. IIallock of New York
city, perfectly unhurt, but unable to eXtricate
himself from the wreck. In calm accents and
t1n1a.4 l,- rIlla.tal ba fold TO,
axe and try to cut an opening in the side of
the car. We searched around and obtained
one from house by the roadside, but it was
80 blunt we could do nothing with it. We
worked and Strovc to liberate the unfortunate
gentleman. who sat there sound in limb
Watching the approach of the hungry flames. |
Nearer and nearer they came, until his hair
began TO crisp and burn and his skin to crack |
Then we were in like manner found the heat
unbearable, we Reluctantly retired, compelled
10 leave this poor gentleman with his eight
fellow sufferers to their terrible fate. We
moved Oft until all was over. Nine persons
were thus burned to death. and nine others |
injured more OF less severely. We next turn
ed our attention to the preservation of our
baggage. but only succeeded in saving eleven
trunks out of ninety or one hundred. All
the express matter was burned up and about
ont-thrd of the mail. Five cars were con-
,tlmcd By the lirc-two passenger, one Sleep
INC, the baggage and mail car. l lost all my
clothes and other property, and escaped Just
rs | stand. The freight train did not receive
much injury for we disconnected the cars as
soon as possible, and ran them back along
ihe line by hand. When we alighted from
our train, Immediately after the accident,
messenger, We're dispatched both ways to
stop those coming. and to obtain assistance.
We worked hard all night putting out the fire
and attending to the wounded, who were
taken to the surrounding houses, where every
attention was paid them by the occupants
ri four o'clock in the morning the wrecking
train came up from Narrowsvile bringing
with il Il surgeon; there was none nearer the
scene %! the disaster than fourteen miles. We
were brought to New York yesterday after
noon by the train which was due in the morn
mo.