The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1883-01-27
Twenty Lives Lost in California.
A Passenger Trains Race Down n Steep
Grade-Passengers Crushed and Burned.

Observation-Disclosures Crushed and Burned.
SAN Francisco, Jan. 21.--The Southern
express train which left here Friday was
wrecked near Tehaehapi early yesterday
morning. Twenty people were killed and
twelve badly injured. Shortly after midnight
the overland express by the Southern Pacific
stopped near Tehaehapi Station TO cut out an
extra engine taken on at Sumner to assist in
pulling up the Tehaehapi grade. When the
train stopped the air brakes were applied. On
detaching the engine the brakes relaxed, and
the hand brakes were either left open or were
not strong enough to hold the train. The
movement may have been helped by the
strong gale blowing. The train got away and
started back Rorthward down a grade of 120
feet to the mile. The train consisted of two
engines, express, mail and baggage cars, two
sleepers, one coach and smoker. 1t went
down the grade at a frightful speed for about
four miles, when the hindermost sleeper
jumped the track and went over an embank-
ment about Is feet high, carrying with it the
other sleeper and mail, baggage and express
cars, which were piled in a shattered heap.
They then took fire and were consumed. The
coach and smoker kept on down the grade and
were stopped without leaving the track about
two miles further on. All on board the latter
were uninjured. The scene following the
wreck was terrible. A number of persons
were jammed amid the ruins of the train, and
roasted to death before the eyes of those help
less to save them.
At the time the train broke loose and ran
down the grade the air brakes had been taken
off, and the men who tended the handbrakes
were away from their posts, one attending to
switching the engine, and the other relighting
his extinguished lamp. The train gathered
Roadway quickly, and was soon dashing down
the grade at the rate of mile minute. At
a sharp curve of the road the coach and smO
ker, which were ahead, broke the coupling
and separated from the rest of the train, max
ing the turn safely. The sleepers and the
mail express and baggage cars were dashed
against high bank and then thrown back,
rolling down an embankment The lamps
and stoves at once set fire to the wreck, which
was instantly in blaze. Harry Connors,
news agent, who was sleeping in the baggage
car, was awakened by the movement of the
car and aroused James Woodruff, baggage
master, just as the cars made the jump. The
roof of the car was split open and both men
were thrown out and severely bruised. Con-
nors, while lying on the ground, unable to
render any assistance, saw the train envelop-
ed in flames, and heard the shIieks of the dy-
ing victims, and saw them vainly endeavoring
to struggle from the burning ruins. Porter
Ashe and wife, who occupied drawing room
of one Of the sleepers, were awakened by the
crash. They succeeded in getting out with
out injury. Out of sixteen other occupants of
the car not one is believed to have escaped.
Meantime the occupants of the coach which
kept on the down grade succeeded IN stopping
it, thereby saving the lives of some forty oc-
cupauts of that and the smoking car. They
Immediately walked back to the scene of the
accident, but found only the smouldering re-
mains of the train and the few who had es
capped with their lives, lying bruised and bleed
ing in the darkness, shivering in the piercing
cold night air, Or rendering assistance to each
other. Relief soon arrived from Tehaehapi,
four miles distant, and, as soon possible,
1Aedical attendance was sent from Sumner
and Bakersfield, and subsequently from Los
Angeles. A search for the dead soon showed
that p persons had persisted. Eleven were
beyond all recognition.