Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-03-29
A Burning Sleeping Car-Narrow Es-
capeS.
PITTSBURGH, Pa. March /

| 10.
| The passengers occupying one of the Pull
man sleepers drawn by the Western express,
on the Pennsylvania Railroad, had a thrilling
experience at Wilmore Station, a few miles
| this side of Altoona, shortly after five o'clock
| this morning. The train had passed Crcsson
| and was nearing WiImore, with all aboard
| oblivious of their danger, when a tiny tongue
OF flame shot out from among the curta rs
| near the end of the rear ca, gradually but
surely developing into an alarm ng blaze.
passenger in berth No 1, Mr.. Pallern, of
| Ba timore, who was not sleeping very heavily
| ut the time, was aroused by the smell of the
| burning tapestry, and an instant later he
sprang out OF his berth, fully alert to the peril
| of the moment and gave the alarm Imme-
| diately all was confusf IN, and the occupants
| OF the b"rths jumped out to find the en-
! Neloped in flame. a dozen persons ran to the
| doors. but finding the train still in motion
puih q the bellcord. Owing to the right signal
not being ven however, the engineer paid no
aitention to it until it had been pulled several
times. in the meantime tn widest excite
m mt prevailed, and the passengers ran hiher
and ihither. not knowing what to do. Several,
ladi' S iainted, and a number were with diff
| Guilty prevented from jumping OIL
The train was finally brought to n stand-stjll
and the occupants of the car rus b cd out Some
of them were in their n ght clothes white oth-
ers succeeded in saving enough OF their eff
reefs TO make themselves appear respectable.
The firc hau not been discovered n momcpr
100 soon, us by the time the train stopped and
the occupants of the burning car had escaped
the whole sleeper was one mass of flame. and
inside oftwenty minutes was q heap of snoul
del ing ashcs.
VI the tWenty-SiX passengers who had orc,-
pied the burned car. twenty were gentlemen
four were ladies. and the others were children
Fortunately none of them We're injured As
they stepped from the train they ~. scented n
appearance. n n
wrapped in blankets: others werr without
hats and bonnets, and stiil others had no shoes
Among the passengers were General Pension
Agent Dudley, Colonel Benjamin Wilson. an
eX-oongtessman Of West Virginia; General
Caikns, OF Indiana; Colonel Davidson of
Beaver, Pa; and Colonel Porteg Postmaster
of G, nn"llsvillc ra.
Inc makeup of n number of the gentlemen
was ludicrnus. Colonel Porter ha! on ono
boot aud ono slipper aud was hatlcss Colonel
Davidson bad his head done up IN aalewspa-
per, whlio to'onol hen Wilson attfrei in a
blanket and bare headed, looked for all the
woriadikean INDIAN chief on a foragiug eNpe-
dit on General Dudley is said to hny, been
.he coolest person on the ear AMI by his wise
counsel did much to allay The fears of tho In.
dies and children,
Inc IRE origtNlted IL the rear of the car and
ls shppostuto pave boon ratfsed either by the
oVerturnfng OF lamt, or from the stnve Com
ductor Harry Hawkins, who was in charr, o+
the sleeper. did all in his power 10 aid the mas
eh2ers To escape, and was tho last man To leave
the burning car. II
Inc loss can not 10 approximated The
Pullman Company estimate their share mr.
about S2adOl. The loss u the passenyers was
considerable In ctothinc, watches aad scw,lrv
Some of them also lost considerable sums OF
money, r4n. their axiiSal here eae unfortu
nate were Kindly cared for, and w,lre soon nut
in presontabe condition,