The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1873-08-28

The Chicago and Alton r. r. Accident.

Mr.. A. S. Burgess, conductor Of the Pull
man palace car on the train which was wreck.
ed ON the Chicago and Alton Railroad, near
Lemont, on Saturday last, has given an ac-
count of the accident, from which the follow
ing extracts are taken.
! When the collision occurred, Mr.. Burgess
was standing at the door of the car making
off berths for the passengers on the diagram.
| L he first conclusion threw him forward a.
gainst the door, the second hurried him over
the brakeand the third back against the door.
His clothes we're torn aud his legs somewhat
bruised, but he Immediately went forward
with the rest of the passengers to see what
was the matter. "Never in my life, said he,
have witnessed such sight It was the
| fifth collision in which was participant, but
| never did see such utter misery. Ia the
meadows on either side Of the track, were ly-
ing human beings, yelling in agony--thsir
flesh boiled off them. The freight engine
had rul clear underneath the smoking car,
and there exploded, shattering the car into
little pieces, and blowing the occupants high
up into the air, and over the fence. into the
meadows. The other engine burst at the
same time. A mani don't know who it was
ran up to me,shrieking with!agony and threw
himself into my arms. tried to hold him.
but his clothes tore off BIN, and the flesh
came with them I was nearly stunned at the
sight. There were dozen or more, stripped
start naked, running up and down crazy with
pain. They were tearing their bodies, aud
tearing of great handsful of flesh. The pas
sengers behaved admirably. They took up
the victims and carried them into the coaches.
l told them to bring them into the sleeping car,
and they did. First thing knew the ladies,
God bless them were tearing up their under
clothing to bind up the sufferers. Why, sir,
III half minute they had scarcely anything
lett on them. There was round one mans
hand a lace handkerchief that must have cost
small fortune. | could not stand that any
longer. | did not care what the company
said, SO just gave orders to open the lockers
and tear up airy thing that came handy. Aud
they did. There We're two or three ladies
tearing sheets into lengths to bind up wounds,
while half dozen Others were binding them
around the bloody arms and bodies of the
wounded men.
Reporter-Did any one in the sleeping, car
escape unhurt
Mr.. Burgess-lt may seem like romance,
but it is strictly true, and / think you would
like to hear the story. There was a crazy
fellow on his way to the Asylum at jackson
vile. He was noisy aud dangerous, and was
handcuffed ond placed in the smoking car
when we left Chicago. Just after the explo
sion young girl come to me aad wanted me
to find her brother. I told her he would be
looked after, and tried to quiet her down and
she would nos remain still. I was afraid Of
her getting into trouble She told me her
brother was crazy, and could not look for
himself. | tried to keep her quiet for a mo
mcnt, but she escaped me. Presently she
came back with the crazy fellow,who appear
ed to enjoy the scenes immensely. She had
found him just whore he fell in the meadow.
He had been blown by the force ofthe explo-
sion twenty or thirty feet, and had not
scald or scratch about him.
Reporter-And was he the only one who
escaped unhurt?
Burgess-Tbe only one. There was an
other incident which seemed to me extraor-
binary The boy was in the smoking car and
was thrown high in the air and came down
again right through the debris, almost where
he was sitting. He was badly scalded, but l
think he will get over it. I asked him how
he felt, and he said his worst trouble was the
loss of his peanuts