Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-05-05

CLINTON, Iowa. April q.
Az appalling accident occurred on the Rock
Island Division of the Chicago, Milwaukee
ST. Paul Railroad, formerly known as the
Western Union Railroad, eight miles below
this city, and one mile below Albany, ILL.,, at
30 this morning. At that hour the express
train south, due i'm Rock Island at six o'clock.
was passing along at its usual speed. 1t had
just left Albany. As the train approached the
trestie bridge, two hundred or three hundred
feet long, over the Meredosia River, near its
point OF juncturc with the Mississippi, the en-
gineer gave the usual short whistle; but the
bridge must have appeared all right, as he did
not slow up. When within q few feet of the
bridge the engineer must have then noticed a
suspicious appearance, as he gave two or three
short, sharp whistles rs signals OF danger.
Then Immediately followed q crash, hoard
for three miles in either direction, as
the whole train went down into the terrible
rushing waters. The Meredcsa is Mt a
very high stage from the overflow or the
Rock River bottoms beyond, and an unusual
torrent had un 1ermined the trestle, SO that
one hundred feet of 1t gave way as the engine
passed upon it. The train was composed Of
the engine. tender and three cars, the for
ward car containing the baggage, express and
mail; the second car contained eleven pas
sengers; the rear car was the sleeper, and
contained three passengers and the colored
porter. The engine. tender and the two for
ward cars went down into the river. The
sleeper went partly over and hung on the
verge at an acute angle.
The engine and tender. with the engineer.
William West, and the fireman, name not
learned, went down out of sight, and no sign
of the locomotive or men has since been seen.
The engineer is believed to have bravely
stuck to his throttle, when he might posi-
bly, have saved his life by Jumping.
The express messenger. Daniel Ellitnorpe,
and the baggagcman, Samuel Flanagan, had
just gone into the passenger coach before the
accident, and they, with the brakeman, Henry
Meyers, the conductor, Thomas Fuller, all es-
capped by climbing on top or the passenger
car as it was sinking, and leaping thence to
the top of the sleeper. Meyers had his collar
bone broken and had to be helped out ELF
thorpe and Flanagan were both badly bruised
Three passengers in the rear car escaped by
climbing out of their berths up through the
rear end of the car their night-clothes, but
afterward recovered all their clothing. One
of the gentlemen ran back to Albany In his
nights-clothes in the rain and reused the neigh
bors.
Meantime, the passenger coach, with its
eleven occupants, settled into the stream, and
floated off across the water thirty rods to nm
island, where 1t lodged with only a foot and a
half of the upper part out of the water. For
tunately, the forward end was badly broken.
and out Of this one man CROPPED his way, and.
with the help of a train man, pulled out a lady
and girl, who were the only female occupants
Of the car, except another child, a girl two
years old, who was drowned. The mother and
daughter were rescued with great difficulty,
and were in a badly-bruised condition. The
daughter had two or three ribs broken, and
was otherwise badly hunt internally.
Two men and a lad of sixteen had. in some
way, climbed out of the car before IL ioated
away, and got on top. AS it foated by the APP
proach to the wagon bridge, which was carried
out by the flood yesterday, they jumped
ashore, one man and boy escaping, the other
man falling into the river and being swept
under the car. OF eleven passengers in tho
car, only five have been found. The others
have been drowned. No one knows the names
of any one of them, except the lad above re-
fcrrei to, who lost his brothcr-in-law, with
whom he was en- route from Pine River. Wis,
to Omaha. and DIR. Lundy. The boy positive
~ refused to give his name.
Nothing is known of the names or dcstina-
lions of the five adult passengers drowned
except of the Wisconsin man and DIR. ID. w.
Lundy. The latter got on the Inflated train at
Albany and was drowned within sight of his
home. He was a weltknown, highly esteemed
physician, whose loss Is deeply felt, and he Is
widely lamented. He was only going to the
next station below 10 see n patient.