The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1877-01-17
FHE YOUNGSTOWN GAZETTE
WEDNESDAY, JAN Il, 1877.
A. Young Lady 8 Terrible Expert
ence at the AshtabuIa
Disaster.

ence at the AshtabuIa
Disaster.
Miss Marion Shepard. OF Ripon
Wis, one of the survivors of the
Ashtabula catastrophe. arrived in
Chicago Sunday afternoon and re,
lated her terrible experience to 8
Times reporter, from which the fol
lowing are extracts. She was ar
occupant Of the sleeping car Pales
tine, and when the first crash came
she says:
''Some one cried out, We are
going down. At that moment all
the lights in the car went out. II
was utter darkness. / stood up in
the center Of the aisle I knew that
something awful was happening, and
having had some previous expert
ence in rail road accidents, / braced
myself the best / knew how. I felt
the car floor sinking from under my
feet, The sensation Of falling was
very apparent I thought of great
many things, and / made up my
mind that was going to be killed.
For the first few seconds we seemed
20 be dropping in silence. could
Lear the other passengers breathing.
Then suddenly the car was filed
with flying splinters and dust, and
We seemed breathing some heavy
substance. For moment | was al
most suffocated. We went down,
dowu--oh it was awful, 1t seemed
10 me that we had been falling two
minutes. The berths were slipping
from their fastenings and falling up
on the passengers.We heard an aw-
fuE crash. AS the sound died away
We heard heavy groans all round US.
1t was as dark as the grave. How
fell is more than | can say. A
gentleman had fallen across me, but
we were both on our feet in a mo-
ment. Every one was scrambling
and struggling to get out. L heard
some one say, Hurry up; the car
will be on fire in a minute Another
man shouted, the water is coming
in and we will be drowned The car
seemed lying partly on one side. In
the scramble a man caught hold of
me and cried out Help me; don't
leave mel A woman ,cried from
one corner OF the car, Help me save
my husband He was caught under
q berth and some seats. l was feel
ing around in the dark, trying to
release him, when some men at the
other end of the car said they were
all right, and would help the man
out. CROPPED along to the door.
crawling over the heating arrange
ment in getting to it. The fire had
not yet broken out in our car. While
/ was getting. out through the door
the others were climbing out through
the windows.
"On the left the cars were in a
blaze. On the right a pile of rub
Dish, as high as could see, barred |
escape. In front of me were some
cars standing on end, or in a sloping |
position. followed u man who |
was trying to scale a pile of
debris. got on to a coach which |
was resting on one edge of the roof. |
The side was so slippery and icy |
that / could not walk on it. and so
crawled along over it,
The car was dark inside, aud oh,
what heart rendering groans issued
from it 1t seemed filed with peo-
pie who were dying. Two men-a
Mr.. White, from Chicago, and Mr..
Tyler. Of st. Louis-helped me
down from the end ofthe car. Then
was in the'snow up to my knees.
ifr. Tyler was badly gashed about
he face and was covered with blood.
You see Ito the reporter) this stain
IN my sleeve. That was blood
rom his wounds. Right under our
eet lay man, his head down in a
Iole, and his legs under the corner
+ the car. He asked us to help
i'm, and Tyler and White released
is legs some how, and some other
nen carried him away. 1t was
forming terrible. The wind was
lowing a perfect gale. By this time
be whole scene was lighted up by
be burning cars. / could see that
be bridge had kroken off even with
be abutments. The abutments
,oked as high as Niagara. Away
bove US ] could see a crowd of
Dectato.s. Down in the wreck
lere was a perfect panic. The
eople we're beside themselves.
Some were SO badly frightened
I'd panicstricken that they had to
: dragged out of the cars to pre-
INT their being burned up. don
ant to appear in vidious, but 1
ust say that the women, the few
BIO were not killed outright, behav-
! more courageously than the men,
! a ruIe