The evening light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1881-1883, 1882-12-15
ONE FOR THEIR NOBS.
An Interview Regarding the Disaster on
the Mexican Pacific Extension.
The PecOs Bridge Declared to Have Beer
Weak and the experimenting Engi-
neer Negligent.

IOa LIGHT reporter To-Day the appended
statements were made by an engineer whose
name would if published, seem familiar to the
general public.
such horrible accidents as the one at the
Great Dry Canyon on the Southern Pacific
where the false work for bridge !3 feet high
and 300 feet long is knocked down by the fall
of single stick of timber, shows either a sad
lack OF the knowledge of bridge building or
criminal negligence by the engineer in charge.
From the statement of Capt. richards, who
seems to know about the work, the bridge
must have given away from the want of proper
way for trestling to fall and therefore should
have been guarded against. If the false work
was in three decks, rs suppose it was, Judging
stood M Il the deck "f tho Ioyar tinr are
strong enough, even if several alternate bents
OF trestle had been knocked down. But even
if the bridge did fall from a single
trestle it shows that the trestling was not
properly braced. The stick would most likely
never have fallen if the floor on the top of the
treStling had been suitably arranged for men
to work on. Why railroad companies will con-
tinuc to employ fOremen ignorant of the first
principles of engineering, and put them in
charge of such important undertakings, is
hard to eXplain unless their greediness makes
them unwilling to pay for the services of good
men.
If II capable engineer is employed by a COM
pany, as l believe there was in this instance, he
generally has SO much work to attend to that
he cannot attend properly to any.
There is rarely amy mystery about the falling
of bridge, though it is often convenient for
people to say SO, even if they do not believe it
A bridge is like. everything else,-if it Is too
weak to stand up it falls down. This bridge
over the Great Dry Canyon was too weak to
taking the lives of innocent men and leaving
mothers, wives, and children to mourn.
1t seems hard sometimes to think of every
thing happening for the best but think how
mo f,niv Il
OF people had been destroyed instead of the.
nine that were killed. which accident might
have happened with the engine of Is tons and
1900 lbs cars which make up trains at present
;St""iC..s causes for the falling of bridges
will not do in the present enlightened days
only uuacks refer the causes OF such disasters
TO mystery. Not long ago ! was appointed to
examine into the cause of the fall of an iron
bridge, which would have been called mys-
FERROUS accident, but upon calculation of the
strength of its parts found it was barely safe
King Bridge cOmpanyiOf Cleveland who are not
allowed to build II bridge in their own state
though they have built most of those in the
city of San Antonio.
see by Il letter in the Express that the Off
GERS of the railroad considered the bridge over
Great Dry Canyon one Of the strongest struc-
lures on the road. | wonder if the officers had
seen and examined the work. The plans for
the bridge might have been perfect, but seeing
that the work is done well is of much more i'm
pOrtance than the plans.
i ne liilucSt nclu DyJulSe 3eanc upon the re-
mains of the men the railroad officers say de-
VclOpcd nothing definite as to the cause of the
catastrophe, but in the next line they say the
railroad company was entirely exhonerated of
any and all blame. would like to know how
such II decision could be arrived at when they
say nothing definite was determined as to the
cause of the accident. There should be- us in
the Ashtat llla disaster, experts appointed mot
employed by the railroad company to ex-
anime into and decide where the
blame should rest; but sup
pose that is little too much to
expect from our present state gov eminent.
Free passes are too common. And railroad
companies will continue to build such bridges,
and trains may not fall through them, but the
building should not be allOwed-it is an inius-
tice To the unfOrtunatcS who have to ride over
and work on such bridges. The families have
the sad alternative of recourse to the law, if
they have money to bring suit against the con-
tractors but then they seldom obtain any
thing after the judgment.