The New York herald., 1871-02-08
THE CATASTROPHE.
The Eeginnlng of Tale OF uorror-Deserip
tion 0f the Collision and Coraagraiion.

The Eeginnlng Of Tn.e OF u0rr0r-DesrYip-
tion of the Collision aud Conaagraiion.
At tweptyfour minutes after ten O'Clock on Mon
day night special freight train, "wild cat,' as
such are called in railroad phrase, laden with
petroleum Oil, In tanks and barrels, passed the STA
ton OF New Hamburg. II consisted of about thirty
cars. Some two OF three roGs below the station one
OF the cars was thrown from, or 'Jumped' the
track. This was net known till the marks its
wheels left on the ground and tics were discovered
hour later BY the light of lantern In the hands
Of Of the hurrying passers.by. Yard after yard
1t hurried siong. jumping from side to side, aud
marking Its devious path tl when nearly aquar-
ter of mile below .ae station aud on the
drawbrdge over Wappinger's creek, the engineer,
doubtless feeling check In tile speed OF the train,
drew out the throttle The renewed force threw the
car which was already or the rails, clean over on
and across The opposite or up track, and pen nell
packing of the cars elsucd. AT this unfortunate
moment sight, always grand but now terrible,
greeted the eyes OF the Tlen on the locomotive.
Twenty or thirty rods away loomed UP amid a cloud
Of smoke flashes Of fame and shower OF sparks,
the engine and train Of the New York lightning ex-
press The engineer OF the coming train saw the
car thrown upon his track, ami, win
STARTING EYES AND BI.ANoRED CHEERS,
drew the valve and let The steam escape. Ii came
forth In torrents and with Kissing, horrible noise.
The fireman. II noble man OF great courage, sprung
the patent safety brakes; but II was late On
dashed the train ike thunderboli. Tue fireman
leapiag, saved his HE. The engineer pale but stead
last, held the valve wide open. Then there was u
crash--a sheet OF flame lcaping hnporeis Of feet IN
the ar-tne trembling and thnlider oi explosion
and half q nunlrei souls were Durled al the feet
OF Goo.
The car struck by the locomotive OF the express
train was surIountei by two huge wooden vais,
containing non-refned explosive petroleum. one
tank was shattered and the OIL rushing forth over
the engine, was iguited by the glowing coais i'll The
ash pan. escaping gas in the second tank caught
the flame ana the terrific explosion ensucd rhe AR
for thousands OF feet filed with the urld lame
OF the burning gas. 1t asccnded to the height oil
hundreds OF feet. IL enveloped an area OF hundreds
more ana those who breathed IN that fatal circle
bad 10 inhale liquid FIRE. Then, before any had an
opportunity 10 compute the time, crashed by
the weight OF cars dis,ointed by the
Shock the wooden drawbrdge crumbled
beneath the weight upon 1t aud sank with its load
through the Ice and into the warer. Then came all
the terrors of Dante's many helk to the sleeping
passengers and to the waking ones. The tlde was
not yet at its fuu and the water was not more than
four feet deep In the cars IL burst the doors how
ever, OF the baggage cars and came through the
windows OF the palace sleeping car with its thirty
three occupants. Mingled with 1t fragments of
broken ice, sharp, cold and cutting. it rushed
along the passage ways and delused the berths,
freezing where it touched. But lii the space above
was nothing but lurid Game--the atmosphere was
burning gas. One half the person en-.
veloped In liquid Ice and the other half
In liquid fire Such was the catastrophe
SIMILAR OCCURRENCE IN ENGLAND.
On the Goth of August, 1868, the Irish mall train
from Chester to Holvhead, when about mile and
hair IRON AberGele, ran into the rear OF the
detached portion OF freight train. The engineer
jumped from the locomotive and escaped death
Tue fireman killed, the engine tender and three
nrst class coaches smashed, and being covered
by escaping petroleum from the freight train were
burned, the flames consuming with them the
pcdles OF twenty three passengers. IL was stated
at the time that Lord Farnham and his two danrn
,ers were burned, and that the Duchess OF Aper-
corn and Lord Castlcrosse, with their families,
escaped. None were able TO recognize the charred
bodies ana all were buried IN Abergele church.
yard.
HERALD REPORTER AND HIS RIDE.
On the down train arriving at Poughkecpsie after
the midnight succeeding the accident was HERALD
reporter. He was doing In the smoking car.
When just above Poughkecpsie it was rumored
through the tram that an accident had occurred on
the road. 1nstinctively he awoke In q moment
He could learn notRing more definite, however
than that o collision had taken place some dozen
miles below. The train passed on and he dropped
asleep. II passed Pougnkcepsie. seme two miles