Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1881-12-09


Wheel the train was running slow,
about as fast as | could walk. The
engine and two or three cars had got
into the span, the former being within
a car-length of the abuttment, when all
of a sudden, as though in dream, l
felt something sinking and said to my
self: MY God has the st. Charles
bridge gone again? The car seemed |
to fall little slow and more than
three times l caught up with it, and
the next thing I knew was standing
on top Of the car surrounded by water
and looking up at the other cars. For
a while l felt very unsafe and thought
every minute would be my last,
for the cars came laundering
down clash, clash, clash, until
l saw the red lights fall and then l
knew that l was safe. l then crawled
upon the top car. few feet above
me, and lay there upon my right side.
While in that position | looked over
at the cab of the engine, which was
Just out OF water, and heard the
means Of the fireman. He was on top
of the cab. There was a space of
about fifteen feet Of water between
me and HIM where some cars had been
swept out down stream, so that /
couldn't reach him. l halloed to
him that | could not reach him, and
that we would have to take things
easy until help came. tie kept call
ing out every two or three minutes,
but no one came. Two skiffs, how
ever, passed on the up stream side,
and [ called to them, but they would
not, the d-n towards. Soon after,
though, we saw a skiff come around
oD the down stream side, which
brought us ashore"
"Wbat, in your judgment, was the
cause Of the span giving away2"
"Well, that is something that can
not really say, but l think it was the
weight of the engine"
"Was the engine of extraordinary
weight"
Eyes; it was a ten-wheel engine,
about the weight Of a rolling-will.
There is no way of estimating the
weight, pulling thirty cars over tha,
bridge"
but that engine must have passed
over the bridge a great many times?"
Eyes, but you know the provorb Of
the constant dripping wearing stone I"
WAS it all stock?'
mo; there were twelve cars Of stock
and the rest we're grain.
WAS the stock all killed."
mo, While l was on top of the
box cars | heard the pigs all squealing
around me, and saw a steer poke his
nose out, as if looking for something
to eat.
who was in the caboose?"
"The conductor, Andrew Dur6eld,
a brakeman, named George Medcap,
and two stockmen, whom l did not
know"
"How did they oscape?"
81 cannot tell you, because l was
not near the caboose from an hour
before we left Moberly."
"What was the complexion of the
train as regards the ownership of the
train2"
well, the frst seven we're the Cen
tral Iowa, and the remainder were
Wabash box and stock cars"
DO you know the number of the
engine and caboose?"
"Yes, the engine was No. 80; but
the number of the caboose l have for
gotten" saying which the sufferer,
who had been most patient and cour-
teous throughout, asked to be excused.
| Mr.. Newton Chamberlain, the fire.
man, dark, good looking young man,
who was then in an adjoining room,
was seen by a reporter, and between
his gasps for breath, caused by the
excruciating pain-he was suffering
| by broken limb-said:
81 was just thinking for some reason
about the accident of two years ago,
when all Of sudden there was a crash
and a simultaneous fall Of the engine
to the water below. The engineer
was sitting on his seat in the cab, and
l was standing at my usual post,
Neither Of us made any effort to jump,
because we had hardly time to think
before we were in the water. l crawled
on top Of the cab after l released my
self from a rod which was holding me
down. The engineer | never saw
again, so | cannot say whether he wa;
killed at once or drowned. l had my
left leg broken below the knee, but the
fact is, don't ! now much about it, al
I was in the cab, and it was all SC
sudden"
A. Matthew, bridge foreman, says
that when he heard the FIRST explosion
it was fully quarter Of a minute be
fore the crash of the falling bridge
and he is under the impression tina
} the engine exploded.
} Thomas Hoffman, bridge watchman
! was on the west approach and hear
, the explosion. He says: II then hear