Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1871-02-16
pGGCe.

The disaster of the Hudson River K.
Il. near Poughkeepsis, of which we
made brief mention last week, was one
OF the most horrible affairs of the kind
on record. At least % passengers were
consumed in the burning train. The
following is pretty clear statement of
the affair, given by Mr. J. V. Farwell, of
Chicago, who, with his wife was on the
train;
1t was not n Chicago car that was
burned. l. was car loaded in New
York for Buffalo, and was filled with
Buffalo passengers. Every birth in that
car was take1, for parties came up wish
ins to get in, and the conductor told
them that they could not, as it was full;
and so they came into our car.
The accident was not probably owing
to any fault on the part of the conductor
of the train. II we had gone forward a
minute earlier than we did, or if we had
not arrived there by two minutes as early
as we did, there would have been no ac-
cident. They were going south when an
axle broke en- the bridge, and threw one
of their cars across the track Of the ex-
press train coming up. The conductor
of the oil train had got his signal all
ready aud started to apprise the APP
preaching train of the accident The
engineer whistle on the train sounded
down brakes three times, and the train
was propably not going over II or 10
| miles an hour, or about half as fast as
usual, when u collision occurred. If the
| brakes had not been whlstled down,
,here would have probably been three
times the number killed that there was.
The track was broken up by striking
! the oil car, so that more cars w0nld have
been thrown off if the train had been 60.
! inc as fast as usual There was at least
| ten tons of oil in the water, on the ice and
the bridge, and this was set on fire at the
same instant; and as quick as am tell
| ing about it to you now, that whole mass
of bagcage--th being two baggage
ears and one passenger ear-was in
| flames sid not hear n groan or cry
from any passenger in that who'd train,
had been abld about fifteen minutes,
and was doing at the time Of the acci-
dent The concussion awoke me to con.
seriousness. When the cars came to a
stop so suddenly | got out of my berth
and discovered flames coming upon the
sides of the car; but our car was con-
nected with the car ahead of it with
patent coupling, which, as soon as the
car went oil the track, released it, and
that saved us. My stat room door was
locked, aud it took me, perhaps half a
minute to get it open, | was obliged to
throw my whole weight against it, and
force it open, and by that time the glass
in the windows next to the burning car
vas melting and the ilames coming into
the stateroom My wife went out first
The smoke and flames were then coming
in at the door as we left the Stateroom
There was not a passenger in the car
when we went out Of the stateroom,
was the last one 70 20 out. A passcn-
ger who came in to see Il we were out,
went along out with my vile, then
went into the third car back. Somebody
gave me blanket saw them have it
and asked for it. These were the ones
in the hall there The wood work of
!. hat car was burned up in ten minutes,
Tn glass commenced melting almost as
soon IS the flames touched IT, The ice
was Gov cred with oil for 100 feet, burn-
inc. Il VS. the most intense heat ever
knew. The baggage car and the express
ear we're destr, 7ed and fell with the en-
rue. | could no,t say anything of them
and the engineer rs, | suppose, IN the
burning mass They were undoubtedly
smashed to pieces u nd burned ap IN less
than no time