Mexico weekly ledger., 1879-12-11
A SAD L JIDENT.
,RECK
Loss of Life and Property.

~ WV Poos ICW WSCho eHC
amount of railroad and ship disas-
tiers which have taken place, is really
terrifying. Some of them, no doubt,
have been the result of carelessness,
and in some cases criminal careless
ness, but the accident we now have
to chronicle is one among the few
that is unavoidable. A broken rail
is something to be dreaded but not
to be found until too late.
Last Saturday morning. as the
Denver express going west, due at
Glasgow at $40 a. m, came around
the curve at the cut in the Glasgow
yard, the engine encountered q bro
ken rail and flew the track. Engin-
eer, Peck Meade, one of the most
trusty on the road, had just whistled
for Glasgow; the fireman, Harry
LaMertha, had opened the furnace to
throw in some coal; baggageman,
Everett Walker, stepped to the door
of the baggage car with his checks
and papers; Harry Brown, express
messenger, picked up several packa-
ges of money from the safe to get a
package for Glasgow Free L. Paine,
conductor, was in the front end of
the smoking car in the act Of opening
the door to step out on to the plat
form (Which would have been the
last act of his life, for the platform
was knocked into splinters.) The
passengers, most of them were doZ-
ing, some of them opened the win
dows to see what station they ap-
preached a few, perhaps, got up to
90 out to stretch themselves after a
long nights ride. The engine, when
1t struck the broken rail, jumped the
track clear, falling on its side and
knocking the boiler head out. Fire
man and engineer were in the wreck
of the engine, amid the steam and
seething boiling water, hot iron and
Goals. The tender fell on one side
and the trucks or the other. Bag
gage man, Walker, saw the engine
from his door as it jumped the track
and jumped for the safety rod in the
top of his car. The trunks and stove
fell on the rod, but could not get to
him. He escaped uninjured.
Harry Brown, express messenger,
was thrown in the end of his car
The car was thrown off the track and
split asunder On top of the wrecked
engine. He was held down by boxes
and timber until he was burned in a
most horrible He died at
the Cromwell House last Sunday
morning at five o'clock from the eff
fects of the injuries. Peck Meade
crawled out of the wreck badly burn
ed and bruised, but not dangerously.
LaMertha was then pulled out, but
In a much worse condition being Sc
verely burned, but bis ultimate re-
cevery, very much SCARED, is proba
BILE, Conductor Paine and passen-
gers, in the mean time we've fishing
themselves out of each others arms
and thinking of u telegram to send
to their folks at home about their
wills. No in the passenger cars
were at all injured.
Great ]precaution is taken by rail-
roads in the way of couplings, &C.,
to protect their passengers and they
seem to be very successful, for in al!
tho accounts of wrecks you hardly
ever hear of any passengers being
killed. Harry Brown had a great
deal of presence of mind, for when
he was rescued from the wreck, he
at once informed his escue that
there WAS $4,000 in his car loose, on
the safe. The money was at once
secured. 1t is thought both the 9th
err injured men will o. Mr.
Browns death is greatly to be re-
GREETED. He was one of the most
trustworthy men in the company's
employ. greatly beloved by all who
knew HIM.
See obituary it this issue.