New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-08-02
TOO MANY DUTIES FOR SAFETY.

TOO MANY DUTIES FOR SAFETY.
WHAT FLAGMAN JAMES DUNN HAS TO DO.
INVESTIGATING ONE OF THE RECENT COLLISIONS ON
THD NEw-YORK, NEw-HAvEN AND HARTFORD
RAIIROAD-A SYNOPSIS OF THE WORK A MAN
Is EXPECTED TO DO.
The inquest in the case of Conductor Z. C. Latin
VINO was KILLED by the collision between freight
trains on the New-Haven Railroad at Rye Thursday
HHye The u me IN Sy r
room IN Harrson-ave. and despite the intense heat
nre a P9r ms sat S out the
}}osSeph Cunning, Charles Gleason, George H. Ellis,
j.: Z; Hayland II Weeks and i. Sloat The witnesses
chester
stephen Field, station agent, who has been en-
that lie had Che general management of the
station at Rye He sometimes acted as switchman.
'e be LII % ne was t the switch
age-master ran up the track with q flag to meet
the same train and Field went to switch for the up
traln AS the up train was crossing the switch the
engineer bew two whistles which sounded like his
usual signal for recall but were not such whistles
as should be blown according to the orders of the
company. Two short whistles signitied let off
brakes and two long ones to call in the fiagrat.
James Dunn, who, was sent 70 flag the train, " as
careful, and had been with the witness twelve
years If the whistles were blown properly, said
Field every, day, there could be no mistake, but
.. The foreman asked the witness what he meant by
s. ide h general maoagement" of the station Field
ried the mail and looded out Tor the switches and
eross1n GIN fact, what was done at every sta
uon Ii the baGga9e-maStor away with the
mail. Field had to keep people off the crossings
:. Suppose an accident happened while you were
would be responsible %
must get ont" answered Field.
10 President George II. Watrcus of the New
Eaven Railroad Company, the witness said that
there was not an average of two trains a day that
NJ STfGn ne S to s saS ears on the TO
sent out Tor years as hagman. When Field left the
stand ne was told to send thefiagman up from the
station 10 testify III the case.
Michael Hanlan, mason. according to his testi-
mony, was working about 800 feet from where the
accident h9prencd; He the nagnan, Dunn,
in his hand He thought the whistles would puzzle
with railway signals having been employed on the
with the flag il he had been in the da9man's
was in the front part of the train when
the accident occurred, one of the fat-cars s'
track at the time OF the collision but he testi6 fed
that he heard no, whistle. lie saw Dunn running
n t InWard dorchester about ten minutes before
James Dunn: the baggagemastcr, testified that he
also "nagged" trains and attended to other duties
at the station His duties from $40 a. m. 70 9i5 n
IN. were attending 10 the baggage. delivery of
freight, switching attending to the crossing carry
ing The mails quarter of mile, to the post office
keeping the depot clean, seeing that water was kent
IN the tanks acting as hagman,, taking care of all
about all" There were about ten trains each
way daily Whenever anybody came for freight
more or less every day a. to the regular freiphts
two each way, if they switched, NE would have to-
switch them On the day of the collision he was not
in the switcl-housc. The mails we're carr ed by him
eight times daily to the post Office and eight times
ing and the tanks had TO be replenIshcd whenever
necessary. As TO his duties as hagman. he was com
train and look out for every way train to see that
nobody crossed. lie couldn't say how many trains
he tagged daily He had TO go half mile in dag
fryn ttr-fi Arap
cleaned daily ard eleven to be filed This was
done between trains whenever he conld get a
looked out for the trains. Dunn had hurry to the
post office with the mail in order to get back to his
aoGe
n This is upY pretty hard work Mr. Dunn said Mr.
"A dollar and ihirty-fve cents day," replied the
witness WITH Th9 acknowledged that it was pretty
years and six months by the company, and since
March = he mad performed the duties enumerated
In regard to the collision Dunn said that he went
three-quarters of a mile 10 flag the extra freight
train from New-flayen. lie was standing there two
train at the depot back then come ahead and then
blow two pretty long whistles, which meant TO cali
i9gman in The, whistles were longer than
usual, and he heard them distinctly. lie then
ran toward The station, as was his duty,
when recalled. He hurried back to do other work
The collision took place before he reached tbo sta
ton. The down freight was going about fifteen
miles an hour. Engineer Close, on the gravel tram,
on the road. The witness had always returned TO
the station on the same signals that he heard on tho
day OF the accident
The IOreman-Dont you get hewildered some
times, Mr.. Dunn, with all your duties
Ii wouldn't do for Il man to get bcwidered rail-
roadingo W
Don't You think there would be work enough
for another man at the station ~
r, We'll wouldn't object to another man there"
Mr.. WaTous asked Dunn whether he could have
mistaken the signal. Dunn WIS positive he had not
been mistaken and added: ",Julymen | woUidnjt
peI}nre myself for the whole United Statcsn Dunn
had hiteen minutes for dinner he said, and used TO
have dyspepsia, You don't have time for dyspep-
STA now, was the commentary of u juTyman, which
provoked laughter
James III. Spaulding of Stamford c,uductor on
the Harlem River way freight train, said his
train left Harlem River at 1910, reached Rye at
2:59, TOUR minutes late. Mr.. Eliot had been nm
ming the engine six weeks and was always n corefuj
man. he witness heard two short pnfis blown TO
cal OIL brakes. III he had heard that signal he
SAID, while Tagging train he would have STAYED
out with the flag lie was confident the putis were
short ones to let of brakes. Spaulding said there
was a tram behind him due in EIGHT minutes and
the man he sent out to Dag the train did not inter
pref the two whistles recall signal but remained
and stopped tue train
The inquest then adiouTaed until tomorrow ot
L p. IN. After the adjournment, stephen Fields the
station agent, was seen 10y u TRIBUNE reporter at
the Rye station. lie said: Conductor Spauldinp
he'd today. DO You think | would send that boy
(Dunal out again il he had done wrong? Mr. Still
well, a resident of Rye, said that Spaulding's engi-
neer acknowledged so him that he Eliot had made
a mistake. Right Is gut and mean to stick to ItD
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