The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1875-08-18
A ROTTEN BRIDGE.
The Recent Northern Pacific Disaster
-Censure from q COrOner's Jury.

-Censure from . COfOner's Jury.
The St. Paul (Minn) Dispatch
prints a full report of the evidence
before the Coroner's jury in relation
to the recent accident on the North
ern Pacific near Brainerd, Minnesota,
from which it appears that the bridge
has been in an unsafe condition since
May last, its condition being sub
ject of common talk among citizens,
and having been reported to kimber-
ly, resident engineer of the Northern
Pacific, and Wallace, the bridge fore
man, who examined the bridge. Wal
lace said in June he was going to re-
pair the bridge, and was told by Ed
ward White, bridge builder by occu-
patton, that it was time; if he didn't
soon he would have a train through
it. White and other witnesses swore
that on account of the center piers
being low, the bridge sagged down in
the center; that one of the lower cords
was dangerously rotten; that some of
the braces were rotten; that the bolts
needed Tightening; that the foot
braces and step-iron to the braces
were broken; that one Of the side
braces was two inches cut of place,
and that the west span had swayed
ness saw the bridge swinging side
ways as trains went over, and eau
toned the company employees, saying
ii was likely to be displaced by such
swinging, so that it would break down
under the next following train. One
passenger thought the cars were off
the track when the bridge went down.
A the others thought none went off
the track till after the bridge broke.
The company's officers and employees
hold the theory that the bridge was
broken by car-brake falling down
and throwing some car off the track
aud against the side of the bridge.
The jury S verdict, however, is as fol-
lows:
That the above-named persons,
Peterkin and Grandson, came to their
deaths on the 9th of July, 1875, by
the falling of the railroad bridge over
the Mississippi River at or near
Brainerd, Minnesota. while freight
train No. 5, drawn by engine No. 45.
of which they were engineer and fire
man respectively, was passing over;
and we further find that the above
train No. 5, was passing the bridge at
the usual speed, about four miles per
hour; that the west span of the bridge
broke first, caused by its being con-
structed of unsuitable and unsound
timber; that it broke by the actual
weight of the train, and that the
whole bridge was considered unsafe
by persons not connected with the
Northern Pacific Railroad, and sew
eral who were-men who were COM
petent to Judge of its condition; and
we further find that several officials
of the Northern Pacific Railroad,
whose duty it was to make examina-
ton of the bridge as to its safety,
were either incompetent to judge of
its condition or were guilty of gross
neglect in not making the necessary
repairs; and we further find that the
conductor of said train did not warn
the passengers of their danger when
he had ample time to have done SO.
The above censurc of the conduc-
tor was based on his own evidence,
that, after looking out from the ca
bose and discovering what had hap
pened, he jumped from the car before
it was on the bridge, without saying
anything to his passengers, who, if
they had been then warned could have
easily escaped.