The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1875-04-09
The H!t,ory of Railroad Accidents.


in few ways were lives lost with such i'm
mediate benefit to the world as in railroad
accidents The whole world travelled
thenceforth more safely for every life
lost. New appliances, new precautions,
severe discipline followed every accident.
During the first eleven years of railroad
experience almost no disastrous accidents
occurred. The first terrible one on the
Versailles road in France, in May, 1872
when an engine broke down while run
ming at full speed, and its cars piled up
on top of it, The doors of the cars were
locked, they took fire, and tifty-three
persons were crushed or burned to death
and many injured. The lecturer gave
other instances Of like character and
showed how recent Improvements in car
construction obviated the danger of such
accidents. In New England there have
been three terrible railroad accidents
that at the Norwalk drawbridge in May
1852, that at Valley Falls. R. l., on Au
gust u, 1858, and that at Revere station
in August, 1871 Each of these was
taken up, described and analyzed, and
illustrated by the experience of many
other accidents of like character else
whsre. All of them were preventable,
and there could be no excuse for their re-
currence. The varions appliances which
had been adopted in consequence of these
accidents were referred to, and the opin-
ion was expressed that the Revere dis
aster had reduced the dangers incident
to railroad travelling in Massachusetts,
by one-half 1t had brought the train
brake and the miller" platform into
general use; it had caused the increased
adoption of running signals and greatly,
improved discipline.
The lecturer then passed to accidents
which had not happened. Since the
Revere accident 20,OOO.0OO of passengers
had been carried by railroads within the
limits of Massachusetts. How many of
these had been killed by faults of the
of the railroad companies, and by acci-
dents over which the passenger himself
had no control? Just one. This state
ment applied only to passengers exercis-
ing due care. In all ways connected
with the operation of railroads, about
800 people year were killed or injured
in the State. Another question: What
is the length in Massachusetts, of the
average railroad journey resulting in
death? The answer sounds absurd; it
is 100000 of miles. That
is, on an average, 100000 per-
sons travel fifteen miles each before any
one of them is killed by railroad acci-
dent. So the average journey resulting
in injury is 100000 miles. If a per
son travelled as passenger on Massachu.
sets railroads, 800 miles day, every
day of his life, he would, by a doctrine
of chances, be 20 years old before he
would receive an injury in railroad
accident. Frence statistics showed
stage coach travelling was at least fifty
times as dangerous as travelling by rail
The danger of being murdered in Massa
chusetts was greater by far than that o
being killed in a railroad accident. Ii
1873 the railroads carried AZ, 100000 pas
sengers without killing one; in the sam
year in Boston alone, five persons wer
killed in tumbling down stairs, seven b.
failing out of windows. With 1000
miles of track, full of curves, culvert
and bridges, with safety depending o.
everything, from the state of the atmos
phere to the strength of the rail-witl
trains moving in every direction at al
times-accidents must happen, since tn
managers of railroads are human. Tha
they should happen SO rarely is the tru
cause for wonder. There is no NOR
wonderful human achievement than tn
combinations of speed and safety Wit
which the movement of modern civiliza
tion is maintained through the uncea'
ing exercise of human care, human ski
and human foresight.-[From Charlie
Francis Adams, J:'s Lecture.