Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1871-02-11
The Tragedy on the Hudson.
Third Days Evidence before the COrO.
ner's Jury-M ore Details of the Awful
Affair, etc.

PoUGHKEEPsIE, Feb. TO- Daniel Carroll
Waterman and switchman at New Hamburg
station, was the first witness to-day before the
coronel'S inquest.
He testified: l was on the watch at 10 III AM.
for the up express, due at 10 :09; looked at the
middle of the oil train, and saw a fire flashing
among the aXes; knew that there was a brok-
en- axle, and halloed to the boys to keep out of
the way; then the broken wheel hoped from
the track; followed the engine down, trying to
signal the engineer by m0tiOning my light; see
ing | could get no answer, | then ran back TO The
conductor in the cabOose; | hillood: "Theres
wheel off the track-put on your brakes as tight
as you can" two men came out and put on the
brakes; it is eighty rods from the station to the
draw bridge, and eighty rods from the draw
bridge 10 the water tank.
Henry B. Merritt testified: | am hagman
and tend the water station at Old Troy; | was
on duty Monday night; saw the oil train come
down, when she struck the drawbridge was at
the tank, and heardIan unusual noise; then saw
the engineer Jump with the red light in his
hand, when he halloaed TO me- "get OUT" i'm
mediately picked up my red light, when the
engineer came towards me, and we both started
down the track on the run, each with red light;
we ran pr badly one hundred or one hundred
and fifty feet when we had to step aside and let
the express, which was then coming, 90 by;
saw the express coming before | saw the oil
train; don't think the express struck the oil
train at full speed.
Nicholas ITALIAN, fireman on the express train
which ran into the oil train, testified We left
New York six minutes past eight o'clock; don't
know what made us late in starting; we were
twenty-five minutes late at Peekskill; don't
know how late at Fishkill; was for want of
steam that we lost our time between New York
and Peekskill; | saw the engineer of the oil
train jump from his engine with a red light; l
supposed his engine was taking water; as soon
as we saw the red light my engineer blew; we
4I.E.
per hour; when we saw the red light | said:
doc, there something wrong with that draw
bridge, the draw is open" he blowed brakes and
said: Mick, put on them patents" he meant
the patent brakes; pulled three yards of the
bell cord, that ought to have put them
on; that's more than is usually pulled;
the engineer reversed his engine the second time
he blew for brakes; when we passed the engine
of the oil train, got down on the step and
asked Doc if he was going to get off; | didn't
want to get hurt; Doc looked around at me but
made no reply; and then looked ahead again,
watching his business; then jumped and rolled
down on the ice in the creek; | knew heard
a crash, and saw fire and smoke; when | got
up, hurried towards the wreck, and heard the
grOans OF the passengers;1 have applied the
patent brake several times, and on such Occa'
sions noticed the oh cking of the car; | made
up my mind when | pulled the patents on
that night that they were not holding us;
the engineer never spoke after he told me to
put on the patent; it takes good while to stop
asl, eping car train on level grade; with that
train on couldn't stop short of half mile with
all the brakes on; there was another man on
the engine with the engineer and myself; think
he went down with the engine.
Cornelius Roe, engineer of the oil train, testi-
fed: My attention was first called to accident
on my train, when | reached the trestle work
on the bridge; l felta shock; grabbed red
light, and didn't stop to look back, as saw the
express coming, and ran down the track, the
express was coming at full speed.