American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-05-06
AN ENGJNEER'S LIFE.

e The Hero of Burning Freight Depot
@ How Several Persons were Killed
One NIonth-A Story which startled n
Arkansas CIergyman-A Sad Event.
: From the New York Times.I
FIsHKILL LANDING, Saturday, Apr
%, 1S76.-W. G. Van Buskirk, tn
Master Mechanic of the Duchess an
!, Columbia Railroad, is an old and expe
rienced railroad engineer. having fol
; lowed the profession nearly all his life
He is a man who has grown gray in tn
service of railroad companies, most o
his time having been spent in Minnesot;
and the far West, where he has beer
employed on several different roads
He was the first engineer that ever rar
locomotive west of the Mississippi
and is the one who, with indomitablt
courage and presence Iof mind, ran 6
locomotive into the burning freight de
pot Winona, Mimi, and by opening
the safety-valve allowed the steam to
escape with such force that it put out
the flames and saved the large struc-
ture. This act of heroism was heralded
far and wide by the newspapers of the
country, and Van Buskirk was given
unbounded praise everywhere. A few
other incidents in the life of Mr.. Van
Buskirk which occurred in the West
several years ago are of interest. Mr..
Van Buskirk had been upon the road
some five or six years, and during one
month of that time his train killed four
persons, at as many different times and
| in various ways. The first of the four
victims was a farmer, who had left
his team standing in the field where
he was engaged blowing, and ran
across the track to get a drink of
water. Hearing the approaching
train laundering along, he started to
return to his team to save them, and in
so doing lost his own life. He jumped
across the track, just escaping the point
of the pilot, but was struck by part of
the engine frame and killed. The train
was brought to a stand-still, and the
unfortunate farmer picked up and taken
home, a few rods distant. Upon exam
ination it was found that his back was
broken. Returning to the train, the
railroad men discovered that the team,
which the farmer wanted to save, had
not moved from the spot where he
left them. The second man killed that
month fell under the wheels while the
train was in motion. He attempted to
get on the train, slipped and fell, and
was crushed to an indescribable mass
of flesh and bones. The killing of the
third man aroused the deepest feelings
of sorrow in the engineers breast. The
man was poor farmer, who was stand
ing at distant crossing with his team,
apparently waiting for the train to go
by. The engineer observed him, and,
thinking that that was his object, an
occurrence frequently noticed by en-
gineers, steam was not shut off, and the
train flew along at lightning speed. Had
the farmer remained where he was the |
train would have passed without touch
ing him, but for some unexplained and
reason he whipped up his
horses just as the locomotive approach
ed, and the man and the two horses
were struck and killed. This man was
also cut into shapeless mass.
The fourth person killed was pas
senger who, at one of the stations where
the train stopped, got off the train and
ran across the track to saloon to get
4 drink. Before he returned the train
had started. Mr.. Van Buskirk saw the
man coming, but, as it was wet and the
rails very slippery, and he had a hard
time to get the train under Roadway, he
did not shut off steam, but kept on. The
man caught the train and grabbed hold
Of the handwriting, running along with
5he car. 1t was the forward end of the
rear coach, but he could not manage to
lift himself upon the platform. He held
fast until he ran into a wood-pile beside
he track, which loosened his grasp of
,he railing and threw him under the
wheels. The man was killed instantly.
This accident occurred eight days after
he third man was killed, and made
Jour for that month.
Strange as it may appear, but few
lays passed in the following month be-
ore Mr.. Van Buskirk's train again
commenced its deadly work. At a gath
,ring one evening in the hotel where
he engineer boarded, and after the
ourth fatal accident had occurred, he
vas addressed by an acquaintance, who
NEW of the killing of the four persons, [
n this manner: "Well, Van, have you
Tiled any one to-day?'' The engineer {
eplied, "No; but I've been mad
nough all day to kill half a dozen '
f could" Another friend who, over 1
tearing the remark, cautioned the en-
,ineer against expressing himself in {
hat manner, for, as he said, "some-
ody might snap you up, and, having 7
illed so many lately, it would probably ,
o hard with you.'' The proprietor of !
he hotel then asked the engineer if he Z
ad kept an account of the number he :
ad killed there in California? The an :,
ver given was that he knew of sixteen !
+ seventeen, but when they got up to :,
nat number he gave up keeping re- r
ord of the killing. In a remote corner =
the room sat gentleman with a b
'hite necktie and having every appear =
nee of a clergyman. He had been list +
ming attentively to the conversation :
richly noted, and when the engineer r
.ated that he had killed sixteen or !,
,vontaap ap6 faila1 10 l-oo,, racorI of