The Portland daily press., 1871-02-10

track before, and pulled the lever, sounding
the signal for "dOwn brakes" The brakes
were applied, but not in time to check the Ter
rible momentum of the train. 1t rushed lnto
the face of the wreck, and the engineers as
sistant, seeing death inevitable, sprung from |
his post, at the same time calling upon the |
engineer to follow. The engineer replied, |
"Pll % with my train." The locomotive |
MINCED into the black wreck, there was ire |
mendous crash followed by death shriekes |
and then an explosion that was heard for
miles, and next the devouring flames. The
engine of the express train was the first to
60 down and bury itself and its driver in the
swollen river beneath the ice. Then followed
the coal-tender, the baggage-car with it's con-
tents, the heavily-laden express car, and lastly
the first drawing room, or sleeping car. with
its freight of human lives. To bury them out
of the reach of hope, the ugly oil trucks fell
upon them and then hellish fire was kndled
over the pregnant grave.
THE FLAMES SHOT UP
as if some deviliSh power was in them eXuit-
ing over the victory. The great light was seen
for miles around Presently the clear night
air was filled with the dismal pealing OF church
bells from the villages lar away. A fire en-
CINE came to the scene with hose to engage
in the useless attempt to eXtinguish the
flames. Hundreds OF people focked to the
scene of carnage, and the sight was one that
can never be efaced from the memory of all
| who saw it, and one, the recurrence of which
| all pray may never come.
RECOVERING THE DEAD.
| The terrible task of fishing up the manoled
bodies OF the unfortunate passengers began
with the morning. The burning of the oil
| car gave light to the body of citizens of New
Hamburg, who worked as men could work to
eXhume the dead. Some portions OF the Sleep
lng-car not sunk beneath the ice were still
burning, and the hardy villagers, needing not
the fire, failed not in their duty. but with lev
| ers, crowbars, and beams of all kinds tore
away pieces of the framework of the cars to
| get at the dead bodies. On one of the brok-
en- tressels of the bridge man held huge
| pine torch, and the scene at the time was
| weird and CHASTITY in the extreme. The i'm
mense pile of lumber, and the frame work OF
| the sleeping-coaches, prevented the villagers
from reaching the bodies during the night. and
not until 9o'clock Thursday morning was the
| first body found.
| A CHASTITY SMILE.
The next was woman, with two children
in her arms. Her body and head were char
red almost to a cinder. She was lying on her
back, and the children seemed to have been
| ieaning forward 20 kiss her when the death
crash came. She wore black alpaca dress,
laced morocco boots, gold sleeve-buttons, and
had three rings on Der left hand. She was
subsequently Identified as the wife of the Rev.
Morrell Fowler. and the body of her husband,
portly man, was ionnd, terribly ds6gured
10y her side. They were en- route for Salt
Lake City.
| A woman, with her right arm burnt nearly
off the backened trunk, was next dug up
The agony which she endured before death
| came to her must have been terrible.
THE CONDUCTORS BODY.
Al length villager, who was armed with
l har IF iron IN finIipO no bod Of
Peter VOsburgh, the conductor of the Buffalo
| sleeping car, who went down with his trust.
He was terribly burnt about the body and
limbs, but by chance the face was not mutt
lated much, and smile showed the white
teeth through the blackened lips of the dead
man. In his breast pocket, claSped tightly in
his withered hand, was the record of his car,
as If, true to his trust, caring not so much for
death, he was determined that others who
might be killed should at least be known.
The record was eleven Names
| ANOTHER VICTIM.
But the worst scene of all was when a sleigh
/ driver saw body OF once fine-loOking m an
lying under the timbers of the second Sleep
ing car. After great difficulty the body was.
taken out, and recognized as that of MI. Geo
s. Benedict, the proprietor of the Cleveland
| Herald. Letters found in his pocket-book es i.
tablished his identity.
Tho noxt hodn TO-, o,,t ~ +ho ee,,
cbasm was that If fina.IooL;na nan ohont
| 30 years of age, with beard and mustache, Al
bert collar, and black tie. The body presen-
| ted a fearful appearance, the flesh being par
TALLY burnt off The skull. This body was
eo 80 nf 90 , su"o " Asoin Geiinaln'
cd celabrtv dur;ng tho 1sr h11 WIZ ;,, rarn
,atS is n.oy,, uurlnS .no war Dy us improve
tho t;n,a OF tho torr;,s1o % oelaln AZ
NOV w. p,,fa,o D.,nra1,u ..;to ~. "ao ou hIs
fony or five ot; I %.o aa aniy u
WIZ, 1,,r. m, ~, az
Assoo,, - aao,, ~. LIZ . DnAn'
;ou S a. oeth oouS was ialseu OUT Oh tne
Il 70 aron borp pa 49,, ';a1 oailleu
I;oltad ~ 1850 L.;n, ~ nv mn ~. nie was
90 - 1913 ,o ,',o e.ot, ne ioI ou "naC
orad,,aI i oto %"o S Az ~ .ne Douies was
Cd fnr ,aytnne anu LUG were SEARCH
ur,SnoIIr tho ~, 'i5 SiacaIlon oo'
fa;nad ~ ~ Jo.a.e1 " .no ueao were ascel
an anu u1 y. sent 10 tnelr 1riends
| nac;oiIu ,S,; .le saouenihs STORY. II was es'
hot tbo v;rL' ~ connection WIN TINS,
sonobt the hos;as .. Nem nan1ou.S aione
H., nff;a;oIs os VI 1l1 uSau' ahu tnat the
"a .l Isenled 10 De whoiiy ABSORBED
IN ~ 4i,SS 49, mS through winch the cars
dnct On the mart Of he ..,, Lhls stranse con-
nniversalIv commantad d t nr oHclais was
last ninht ond ,,,nHe ~ VI Al new hamburg
1 RI hvy f1o o;k
rival ofthe o,cIoer trs7, n trn,,, On lne ar
Ieluay, Wnlcn slowly wound round the lower
par VI Wapplnsers Oreeh at Q 'oo cioch: the
ra s;a, company proyiued not lne smallest,
s M G npams ,os ane passengers 70. get to
halt ,n;Is anu , IeVo.aa , aues had 70 walk
;na om alte Ileeh stsei, IN danger
eyerv ,an,,o ILL ne'AS Wy iaiiis on the Ice
Isst 1 naht tho soonos s.,
sckenino dSastor 1uoro i a. .nI xcnIty on tne
Thero nos tta W. uinul ~ Ille extreme.
cd the Jead In n.y.. sawnns gun wnca nadenveiop
herS and HE h - was .iane ol cnarre1 UNI
,,,a." CIV Man n''uIe ineI carrying llgnts
m1ro ino 10 ~, apout ABOVE the wreck. Inc
souhu VI .ne aAe, saw, ana manner OF the
,ooarnt:u iepanI!s JUG pr'uSe was heard. Two
~ oolo:.tee VII Wig Trans had approached
tho.r oraat 1;ohts oh slue, anu stoou WIN
The nioht VS. All, S u sb .n.o tne ABYSS.
On. thn 5;aId IS "a @nu tne scoaes vi people
;nst ho d;soo W ,11 sne sieek coulo
Tork on the ice and in I ,ha 49, nau Ieen ~
the iioht of dau lasted and Woo ,,oorI, go. 20
To keen from nerishino manv Of then, had
resorted r. sniritnons Iinnor ana in tha oua,,.
inc thew were half intoxicated Tn carr,;ne
wracL on Tho loo tho, ro,, onnSoa o,,d ~, ny
ed at the veru hrink If tho ororo
masts, with their crossing snars. stood close