Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1882-12-29
More than year ago this journal ar


collisions ON this road. on its line West OF
the Blue Ridge, urged that the common
law be applied by the officials Of the coun-
ties in which they occurred. to those whose
criminal negligence might have occasioned
Them. We pointed out how thoroughly
inadequate check is the simple discharge
of the men whose negligence caused the
losses of life, and that is all the power. af-
ter the fact, this lies with the railroad
company. Nevertheless, Notwithstanding
the plain law Of the matter, no prosecu-
tions that we have heard Of have been en-
tered in single county in either Virginia
or West Virginia. though numerous SINH
lar accidents have been reported on this
same road, sometimes with and sometimes
without loss of life. In the last three
weeks nine lives have been lost in two ac-
cidents.
But the neglect of duty by law officers
is no excuse for a corporation. The fol-
lowing are the rules Of the Chesapeake &
Ohio to prevent these accidents:
conductors OF trains falling behind time must
report promptly by telegraph to the chief dispatch
en- SO that if necessary orders can be given to ad
vance them. Delayed time may be gradually mace
up on such portions of the road where it can be
done safely
Conductors and engineers are required to COM
pare time daily with the standard clock in the office,
Of the train dispatcher.
"Conduc torS and engineers are held equally Ie
sponsible for the violation of any Of the rules gov
ernng the safety Of their trains and for taking ev
cry precaution for the protection of their trains
! even if not provided for by the rules.
Conductors of all trains must register their arri
val, en- books prepared for that purpose, at New
port News, Richmond, Charlottesville Staunton,
Clifton Forge. Allegheny, Ronceverte, Hinton Can
melton, Huntington, Catlettsburg, West Chattarei
A C. & l, Junction. Kilgore, Mt. Sterling and Lex
ington. Conductors must not leave these points
without examining the register and ascertainiug
that opposing trains have arrived.
sat stations at which passenger and freight trains
meet, freight conductors will be on hand to report
to passenger conductors numbers of the trains they
are running
We're these rules carried out it may be
inferred that accidents would at least be
reduced to a minimum, and it is a Daatter
of justice to say that Mr.. c. W. Smith.
the General Manager, has been most vigi-
lant and unrelenting in his efforts to have
Is
lies at the bottom Of these murders. for
they are hardly less, is that the G. & 0.
corporation is trying with a single track to
do the business that only double track
can accommodate. The corporation must
do one of two things; it must build
double track or it must refuse the business
that is flooding 1t. 1t must do that or its
name will become a terror to the travel
ing community. and its line be avoided as
a road on which Death Is the toll gatherer.
Corporations cannot create men, they Can
only hire such as are already created, M II
liable to blunders ard carelessness as 9TH
ers are-only death follows in the wake Of
their blunders. Bat the death of these
victims will be laid at the door Of the cor
poration that stands over all as long as 1t
essays with unequal facilities to transact
the immense business of a double track
over single one. 1t has its own interest
at stake as we'll, for it has lost hundreds Of
thousands Of dollars by these accidents
100000 at the Millboro accident alone
and will be liable to much more; for its
agreement with its employees that it
snaII not be sued for damage to them by
Incident, will not hold good in law when
at is tested. The public mind is deeply
moved in this matter, and while unreason-
7 ing counsels will not prevail with 1t, it de-
mands from both its own officers of the law
and from the Chesapeake & Ohio corpora
tion that they shall seek the remedy for
these slaughters at the very source of the
cause.
An Indiana woman gave patient $500
worth of professional nursing, but pre-
sented him with a receipted bill Oh bis
7GOmising-to marry her. Now that be has
broken the engagement, she sues for pay
and 50 500 besides.
The Catholic pastor at Bay City, Mich
igan, has been made by law to pay $3.50
damages for publicly warning his congra
cation not to trade with one CT the men,
bers who, he said, was not good Catho-
lie.
J A little twelve year old son of Jacob n.
Rider, O. Highland county, shot and kill
ed 200 pound bear in the Allegheny
mountains, by himself, last week.
~ Ne Edison electric light is to be intro
a in the Miller School, in Albemarle |
Adnty, and perhaps into the University |
of Virginia.
James q. Cannon, late Readjuster State !
Senator from King and Queen county. has |
been indicted on the charge OF issuing |
aad using fraudulent tax receipts in the !
Iate election. Cannon is now superintend- |
ent of schools.
Mr.. A. j. Williams of Rye Valley, in
Smythe county, gathered this year from
lone apple tree eighty bushels of fine winter
F The youngest inventor on the records il
Washington, is Walter Nevegold, q lad Is !
years of age, of Bristol, Pa, who has pat
Tented important improvements il rolling |
mill machinery.
f Capt S. A. Gilmer, Of Highland, while |
returning from stanton, Dec. 14th was |
thrown from his wagon at Middle River |
and had an arm broken. He was just re-
covering from broken leg.
a pike, twenty eight inches long. was
Caught in stream in Craig county, Va,
lat week.
George A. Horne, Of Ohio, and Miss |
Lucy Carper, of Fincastle, Va, who had |
never before seen each other, were married |
last week in Fincastle. Photographs and |
correspondence had done the c9ulting.
a teetotal bridegroom has lostan eye by
bouncing cork from soda water bottle
an.i the drinking men aver that Mumm' s |
Extra dry has never been known to knock
Ian eve out.
The Rev. DR.. Hicks, who was spiritual
adviser to Guiteau, announces that the
sss4ssia is lot in hell, because there is no
sucl. place.