Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1870-12-01
AeTrain Precipitnued into n Swamp
Five persons Instantly Killed.
From the Charleston News, Nov. IL.

One of the most destructive railroad &C.
cidents that ever occurred in our state hap
pened on the Greenvlle & Coin mbia Rail
road on Thursday afternoon at o'clock. --
The down passenger train, little behind
schedule time, was passing over the trestle
across Cedar Creek, about II miles from
Columbia, when the trestle gave wav, pre-
cipitsting the baggage car and those cars
occupied by passengers into the swamp be-
low n distance of % feet. The locomotive
and tender passed over before the trestle
gave way, and the last car of the train, u
new aud unoccupied coach, stopped at the
verge OF the gap. The cars thrown into the
swamp were the baggage car one second
olass passenger car, andtwo first class pas.
senger cars. The cars were instantly de-
mollshed, and of the unfortunate passen-
gers five were instantly killed, three NOR
tally wounded, four severely injured, and
others more or less bruised, only few es-
| Gaping unhurt
The engineer had Stacked up to cross
over tho bridge, and was just beginning to
increase the rate of speed when the crash
came. But for this fact the loss OF life and
limb would have been fearfully increased,
as the train had been running at fifteen
miles an hour, and was behind time. In
less time than it takes to record it, there
was scene of indiscribable sufft ring and
agony. Anxious inquiring faces among
the fortunate, and shrieks tor help among
the wounded, revealed terrible scene.
Those who escaped injury were at once
rescued from the debris, and the work be-
gan OF extricating the dead and wounded.
The men We're cool and calm in the dis
charge Of their duty and the women be.
ha iSto limo uf
instantly rendered TO the sufferers, and all
united in the utmost exertions to alleviate
the pangs of the manned and dying.
DR.. O. B. Mayor. of Newberry. was the
only physician on board, and actively en-
gagged his services for the relief OF those
most in need. He was without means,
however, as there were no remedial appli-
ances at hand. and there WAS no dwelling
in the immediate neighborhood.
The accident might have occurred at any
time, rs the trestle Was positively danger
Gus, according to the Judgment Of we'll
informed persons whose attention had
been previously called to it. The train
could not have been as heavy as many
freight trains passing almost daily. About
100 persons were on board the train, and
it il miraculous that so few were wounded
Or killed. None realized the danger until
all was over, and there never was such
fearful scene perhaps in which the parlici-
pants acted so deliberately and with such
apparent presence of mind. The chasm
was not over twenty feet deep, nor more
than forty feet wide, and into this space
was ushered a mass of human beings, COW
cred by tho falling timbers and particles of
tne breaking cars.
Messengers were dispatchedto Columbia
al once, and walked the entire distance,
about twelve miles. train went TO the
relief OF the sufferers, as stated yesterday.
as soon as it could be got ready, and at II
O'Clock the welcomed sound of the whistle
announced the news to the eager watchers
that relief was at hand.