The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-02-25

| houso III tuht city' lis wiz ""' WV
graphed to in Chicago from Vergennes yes
terday morning, and is expected to attend
the burial of his remains in Vergennes.
Mr.. Bissell was a generous, kind-hearted
man, universally esteemed, an excellent
business man, and leaves fine fortune.
His sister married Wilbur +. Storey, pro-
prietor of the Chicago Times.
William X. Bissell, the only child, was
II years of age, and promising young
man. He went to Vergennes with his
father to spend few days visiting, reach
ing there Sunday morning. Mrs. Bissell is
thus left without husband or child.
OF those who escaped from the car none
were fatally injured, though several were
terribly bruised. Mr. Pitkins was badly
cut on the right side of his head, escaped
without clothes, lost gold watch that cost
5000, but went on to Troy by the same
train.
| Mr.. Gilbert was cut about the head and
received Commissions. He was brought to
| the Bardwell house, Rutland, and is doing
we'll. .-ss 1..-ta
Mr.. Tierney was bruised and scratched
some, and his wife received blows on the
head OF a severe nature, also Commissions in
the side. They were taken to the house
of G. o. Stafford, near by, are receiving
good care aud will resume their journey in
a day or two. They lost all their clothing
Mr.. Woodbridge escaped with few
bruises and no clothes. He went home,
having obtained overals and coat from
some one.
The engine and baggage car went on to
| Dandy at once and returned with Dr.
| Whipple. In the meantime the citizens,
who gathered at the scene, and the passen-
gers 10 the passenger coach did their best
to relieve the suffering and aid the unclad
survivors of the sleeping car. Mrs. Ed
ward Palmer, of Rutland, who was on the
train, tore up her clothing for bandsges
and worked with will. Mrs. G. o Stat
| ford brought from her house material to
dress wounds and rendered much assist
| ance. se~earr s.f,.t.. "a
The scene of burning car Is one that
may be but family imagined and certainly
not described. As before stated the
wrecked coach rested on lis two ends, leav-
| ing several feet of space beneath the center.
| As the thin portions of the car burned
away, leaving the strong, iron bound oak
:..r Lol ;,,t bo npt al NJ
of the car could be seen. First the floor
broke through and the lower limbs fell
down, the bones exposed. Afterwards the
body was seen. the intense fire pealing the
flesh from the back and ribs, which were
in turn reduced to cinders.
The remains consists mainly of part of
the trunk, with the tissues shrunk down
and charred to them. These are about
twelve inches in length and three or four
inches in diameter, and are black. The
remainder of the bones are calcined per-
fectly white and are in small pieces, and
generally indistinguishable as to form or
character. The larger portions of the
bones of the body were reduced to impal-
pable ashes that could not be recovered
Whether third person persisted in this
fateful car is question which many facts
seem to prove in the affirmative. 1t ap-
| pears that only one cried for help that was
not rescued, and one persisted in the at
tempt to rescue him. The sleeping car
conductor was not positive as to the num-
Der Of passengers, but thought there were
ten the porter thought there were more
| than ten, and as he had the preparation of
the berths his opinion is entitled to some
consideration, Nine only of these can be
accounted for, as will be seen by the fore
going list of passengers. ri 81 b, e.
AS soon as light IN the morning, Thomas
| Norton, D. II. Stinson, +. C. Bailey, and
possibly others Of South Wallingford, went
to the ruins and carefully gathered up the
charred remains of those burned. Under
The center of the car, from whence they
had, during the fire, pulled out a portion
| of the unconsumed trunk OF one man, they
| gathered few additional calcned bones.
Near the banks of the mill-race, the spot
where cries came from young Bissell, two
distinct piles of bones, more than three
feet apart, were found These were put
carefully in two separate boxes, as the
remains of two persons. The smaller
heap was but quart or 30 of calcined
bones. The other contained portion OF
the trunk shrunken and charred to the di-
mention Of small billet of wood, but not
cacined. Also many other pieces OF bones
and what proved to be the basiler process
of the skull, a piece not largar than the
palm of the hand. 1t was here that frag-
ments of gold watch thought to belong to
the G. H. Bissell, was found. But when
Dr. Pond came to examine the bones that
were in these separate boxes at the depot,
he came to the conclusion that those found
near the mill race in two separate spots, be.
longed to the same person and had been
separated somehow in the burning of the
car. Not that there were enough bones To
construct the frame of person, nor were
they closely examined TO ascertain if any
duplicates existed. Indeed it was hardly
possible to separate them 80 az to distin-
guish parts to any extent. DR.. Pond, how.
ever, decided to class the two heaps as one.
They were therefore placed in one box AND
called the remains of w. II, Bissell, while
those recovered from the central portion
of the wreck were called G. Ii. Bissell
The third person, if there was one, wal
doubtless stunned or suffocated at first
and was unable to call for help.
The heat of the fire was intense, metas
of all kinds fused and ran away. OF foul
watches said to have been lost only thu
trace of one is found. The large quantity
of dry hard wood composing the CA
sirewed the rocks and ground with a laye