The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1879-10-16
A DREADFUL ACCIDENT.
Collision on the Michigan Central Railway
Many Killed and Injured.
Especial to the St. Louis Globe DemOcrat.I


Many Killed and Injured.
ESPECIAL to the St. Louis Globe Democrat
JACKSON, MICH, October 10.-The most
frightful accident in the history of the Michi-
gan Central Railroad occurred between l and
2 O'Clock this morning, three miles east of this
| place. The Pacific Express train No. ,, con-
sisting of seven Wagner sleepers, four passen-
ger-coaches, with mail ana baggage cars,
/ which was due TO leave Detroit at $50 last
{ evening had been delayed, and lett Grand
/ Trunk junction 40 minutes late ON arriving
I ut the switch quarter of a mile east OF the
jackson Junction, without the slightest warn
/ ing, it
CoLLIDED WITH A SWITCH ENGINE
/ which had been left on the main track. Both
| engines were completely demolished. When
/ the Pacific Express struck, her engine ana TWO
baggage cars passed on to the lea, leilN ing tht
I smoking car to strike the switch-enSlne ana
telescope with the first pas>enger-cr anu
/ emigrnt coach. Upon the latter feu the
/ heaviest burden of the disaster. The tender
/ of the express eng ne was telcscoped INTO the
! baggage-car about half its length, ana TINS
| car in turn forced its way into the mail car,
! and these crowded the cniglTlnt car on the
/ track on to the emDankmcnt ana crashed
! back through the two following coaches. All
| was in ineXtricable confusion. The cars were
/ hcaped one upon another, ana Dcntath the
broken timbers lay the dead and dying IN
/ great numbers
/ II was some time before those who were
! able to assist the suffering could recover from
their shock sufficiently to understand the fuli
force of the disaster When the locomotive
| struck, the engineer and fireman OF the
! switch engine Jumped off and saved them
| selves Milton Gilbert of Detroit, the eng1-
neer and Smith of Jackson, the fireman, were
both literally torn to pieces and buried under
: the wreck. Both engines were thoroughly
demolished In the first coach were some 80
or 80 French Canadian emigrants, bound Tor
/ the northern woods to engage i'll cutting luin-
/ Der. The majority of these were instantly
/ killed or fatally injured. There were several
/ women and children among them. Many OF
I these were buried under the fragments OF cars
! and hcmmed i'll by the train ana tmDers,
/ and shrieked and mOancd III YAM Tor ASSIST
! ance.
The passengers in the first regular passen-
ger coach were mainly unharmed,thc harvest
of death being reaped inthe second and third
coaches The fourth coach escaped with
slight damage, and none of the Wagner cars
were at all injured.
As near rs can be ascertained,
THE ACCIDENT WAS CAUSED
by the switchman having charge of making
up II freight train at Jackson Junction occu-
pving the track with his switch engine and
c;iboose with the understanding that the Pa
cific express was very considerably behind
time. The express train, however, had been
running faster than her schedule, and had
made up nearly all of her lost time.
The news of the disaster reached jackson
very soon after, and people were aroused
from their beds and hurried to the scene.
Physicians and surgeons were at once sum
moned from jackson and Detroit. y
special train left the latter city with Il
number of physicians on board at D
O'Clock this morning. large force OF EN-
ploVees of the railroad company were gath
cred and proceeded ut once to the work OF
eXtricating the coaches from the wreck The
railroad officers, surgeons, citizens ana en-
plovees worked with will among the wound
ed, doing everything in their power to alleviate
their sutferings.
Few, if any, of the first-class passengers
were killed, and but one is known to have
been injured. This was Arthur Rogers OF
Philadelphia, who had both legs crushed
Manager Ledyara arrived at the scene with
n cOrDs of assistants at an early hour and did
much toward assisting the untortUnates. The
victims were brought by special train TO this
city, the injured being cared for at the Hurd
and Hibbard Houses, and the dead being laid
out at the undertaking establishments OF Potts
& Olmstead and Simmons Il Quears. The road
was blockaded so that no trains could pass.
/ THE KILLED.
The number killed is fifteen, as follows:
/ Milt Gilbert, engineer of the Pacific express
train, aged 80; L. Il. Smith, fireman of the Pa
! cific express aged 20; Lewis MOngeOn, French
Canadian; VIM. John Rice, Philadelphia; Mrs.
w j. Rice, wife of the above; Mrs. Garland,
Philadelphia; Annie Garland, daught G %
the above, aged 10 years; Moses Gray, Troy
Vt aged 81; Willie ElIns, Troy, Vt, aged "A
Mrs. s. NJ Sparklin, Philadelphia, and two
children, aged 3 and years; two men, names
unknown.
THE WOUNDED.
The list of the wounded is as follows:
, 4 child of E. ]. Parnell st. Catherine, Ont
/ s. NJ Sparklin, Philadelphia, whose wife and
children were killed; confusion in the lace
: and sprained wrist The family were bound
, for Chicago. Hermis Dcsmaisauve. Angus
Ont RoSimOn Desmaisauve, brother OF the
above: bad confusion of the hand, Arthur
Rodgers Philadelphia, brother OF Mrs Cart
: land and cousin of Mr.. and Mrs. Rice, al
. bound for Sterling, Kansas; badly bruised al
over, but no bones broken. Milton Carllinpe
express messenger: very badly hurt. Alfred
Bennett bagga@eman; bruised generally, pul
no fractures. VIM. Baggy, Troy, ' e., severe
{ confusion of the right leg; bound for CalItori
MIA. Daniel Finn laborcr ChlcaS0' cur iiR I
bruised generally. John Jetfi1cs, Newark, y
l j.: bound for Chicago: fractures and contu'
sionS: will probably die. Little W me hlcc
mother and father both dead; leg broken. j
. ParneIl, IT. GATHERINGS, ont. leg broken al tl'
ankle Joint: hands and lace injured IRON
splinters Mrs. j. +. Parnell, ~. faui, Aiun
cut about the head; deep gaSh IN iotcHetQ
Geo \ Cunningham. Greenvillc, Wis; LEI
arm broken in three places; bad Scalll Wounu
Mrs. Parncll; cut over lett eye, anu iclt Ies
spIained Reuben Carter, GarSeY, Ill, JhSt re
turning from England, rSlI arm anu IA u
| / confused: little finger cut OF. Robert " leld
Trenton: severe injuries III BACK ana Douy
Leopold Hoffman, Randolph, Mass: severe
cut on foot. Delbe1T W. BenJanln, Jersey
HEIGHTS Y J.. injured in the elbow, hip, heaC
and lungs very generally. WmBalneN, Nlult
ont bruised quite severely. Mrs. y. W steele
Detroit left leg badly spraincd ana sii@hi
ly bruised on body; shock caused tehlpnI',l
deafness. Mrs. Thomas Camp, Lockport,
y arm and side of head badly cut ana sc
verely bruised in back and side. Her daugh
ter Il little girl about years old, was slightly
bruised on the side OF the head. Mrs. u.
Hart. Clinton, Ia, cut about the head severe
~, but not seriously.
The spread of Christianity in japan
during the last seven years has been re
markable. There are now 43 Protestan
churches in that country, with mem