Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-01-22
ROASTED ON THE RAIL.
SICKENING SCENES ON THE
SOUTHERN PACIFIC.

Railroad. There being only one telegraph
operator at Tehachapi station no press
dispatches regarding the railroad acci-
dent have yet been received, but the fol-
lowing has been obtained at the office of
the railroad company here: Shortly after
midnight the overland express by the
Southern Pacific, which left here at $3.50
a. m. yesterday, stopped near Tehachapi
station to cut out an extra en-
gine taken ON in Sumner to as
sist in pulling up grades. While making
the change, by some chance vet unknown.
the train got away and started nOrthward
down the grade of 120 feet to a mile. The
tram consisted of two enginess, express,
mail and baggage cars, two
sleepers, one : coach and smoker.
II went down the grade at
frightful speed for about four miles.
when the hindermOst sleeper jumped the
track and went over an embankment
about one hundred feet high. The sleeper
carried with it the other sleeper and mail
baggage and express cars, which were
piled in shattered heap. They
then took fire and were
consumed. The coach and
smoker kept on down grade, and were
stopped without leaving the track about
two miles further on. All on board the
latter were uninjured. The scene follow
ing the wreck was terrible. A number of
persons We're jammed amid the ruins of
the train and roasted to death before the
eyes of those helpless to save them
At present it is impossible to give the loss
OF life accurately, but it is believed from
Twelve to fifteen persons We're killed or
burned to death. The dead. so far as
known, are Mrs. John Cassell, wife of a
Well-known mining man (burned); and
+. w. Plerson, express messenger. The
porter OF. one of the sleepers
named Wright was taken out alive, but
died soon after. Lawrence, porter of the
other sleeper, was burned. 1t is feared
that the wife of eX-GOy. Downey, who,
with her husband, was on the train. is
among the dead. At 1850 a. m. seven
bodies had been taken out. Some are
burned beyond recognition.
The following are reported injured ::
Mrs. Capt. j. X. Brown, Miss Ida Brown,
Lee WaterhOuse, Mrs. a. l.. WaterhOuse
and two children, JnO. L. CasseII, eX-GOY-
ernOr Tom Downey, the maid of Mrs. Por-
ter Ash, JAS. Wardall, f. W. Dougherty,
Mrs. p. G. Hatch and Mrs. II. Hatch.
1t is "A remarkable fact that the wounded
are almost without exception but slightly
injured.
The following passengers are unhurt:
Porter Ashe and wife, III. A. Oliver, Miss
Esquires and T. j. Oliver. Many are
missing, and are supposed to have been
buried in the wreck and consumed.
Mr.. Ashe and wife, who is the daughter
of the late Judge G.. b. Cracker, were on
their wedding tour, and were in the Sleep
er, which first left the track, and their es-
cape uninjured is almost miraculous.
a special train has been sent to the
scene for Los Angeles with physicians and
an undertaken. The dead and injured
will be taken to Los Angeles. Meantime
every possible attention is paid them on
the ground. A Wrecking train has ar
rived from Sumner.
Further advices from Tehachapi give as
the probable cause of the accident that
when the train stopped the air brakes were
applied. In detaching the engines the
brakes relaxed and the hand brakes We're
either left open or were not strong enough
to hold the train. The movement may
have been helped by the strong gale
blowing.
1t is now certain that 1S passengers and
sleeping car pOrters were killed, and 10
or II badly injured. Seventeen bodies
have been removed from the wreck. One
of them is considered certainly to be Mrs.
DOwney. Captain WaterhOuse, previous
ly reported injured, is not expected to
survive.
The following were badly burned: Mrs.
p. c. Hatch, Mrs. II. l.. Hatch, Mrs. Capt.
Brown, Il. c. ROns, Capt. T. II. Walker,
;. Coffin, j. w. Searles, j. b. WOodall and
T. w. Doughty. The wounded will be
placed in the hospital at Los Angeles at
the railroad cOmpany's expense. The re-
mains of the unidentified dead, if any, will
be buried at Los Angeles.
Superintendent FellmOre says it is not
known who was to blame, but some one
has been careless. The matter will be
thoroughly investigated.
The train carried from this city one
pouch of registered letters for st. Louis
and about 100 small packages of register
ed letters for various other points.
The mail was important and unus-
ually full, containing letters and
printed matter for Los Angeles,
San BernardinO and all post offices
south of those points in Arizona, New
Mexico, Texas, and portion of Colorado
and the State of Sonora, Mexico. One re-
port is that all the mail and express mat
ter was burned; another that it was saved.
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. PA dispatch
from Tehachapa concerning the accident
to the Southern Pacific express train near
there yesterday confirms the death of Mrs.
DOwney, and says Ex-Governor DOwney is
badly hurt, but will recover. A dispatch
from Los Angeles says it is now ascer-
tanned that at the time the train broke
loose and ran down grade the air brakes
had been taken off, and the men
who tended the hand brakes were
away from their posts, one attending to
switching. the engine and the other re-
lighting his eXtinguished lamp. The train
gathered headway quickly, and was soon
dashing down grade at the rate of a mile
minute. At sharp curve of the road the
coach and smoker, which were ahead,
broke from their couplings and separated
from the rest of the train, making the turn
safely. The sleepers, and the mail, eX-
press and baggage cars were dashed
against the 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 Corners, news agent, who was
sleeping in the baggage car, was awakened
by the movement of the ear and aroused
James Woodruff, the 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-
ners, while lying on the ground unable to
render any assistance, saw the train en-
velOped in flames and heard the shrieks of
the dying victims, and saw them vainly
endeavOring to struggle from the burning
ruins. Porter Ashe and wife, who occu-
DltNl luC III th AOOlll VI OiC VI iliC oiCCl'-
ers, were awakened by the crash. They
succeeded in getting out without injury,
but of sixteen other occupants of the car
not one is believed to have escaped.
In the meantime the occupants of the
coach, which kept on down grade, sue
ceeded in stopping it, thereby saving the
lives of some forty occupants of that and
the smoking car. They Immediately
walked back to the scene of the accident,
but found only the smouldering remains
of the train, and the few who had escaped
with their lives lying beside them and
bleeding in the darkness, shiYering in the
cold night air or rendering assist.
ance to each other. Relief soon arrived
from Tehachapa, four miles distant, and as
soon as possible medical attendance was
sent from Sumner and Bakerfield,
and subsequently from Los Angeles.
The search Tor the dead soon
showed that twenty-one persons had
perished. Eleven were beyond all recQg-
milton, only headless bodies and charred
limbs being found. The names of the
dead thus far identified are Chas. Pierson
Wright, colored, Miss Mamie K. Quirres,
Mrs. II. o. Oliver, Mrs. Downey, NJ.
Wetherel and Mrs. James Cassel, and a
body supposed to be that of Col. Larrabee,
an eX-COngressman from Wisconsin.
Weather Indications.
OFFICE CHIEF SIGNAL OBSERVER,
Jan. 21.-IndicatiOns for