St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-12-13
VOICE FROM A LIVING GRAVE.
Suit Of the Victim of a Railway Acct
dent Whose Misfortune the De-
fendent's Council Admit is
Most Heartrending,
Most Heartrending.

Yesterday aftern Don witnessed the opening
of trial in the district court, before jury,
of the case of Chas. L. Dunn, a minor, by
his guardian adj Item, Ellis S. German, ESQ.,,
of this city, VS.. the Burlington, Cedar Rapids
& Northern Railway company, Hon. c. D.
O'Brien acting as counsel for the plaintiff,
and Hon. c. K. Davis and Mr.. Springer,
the roads attorney, for the defense.
The action is brought by the guardian in
behalf of the minor for $50, 600 damages for
fearful and horrible injuries sustained by an
accident on this road last February, occurring
two and one-half miles north of Green,
Iowa, and sixty-two miles south Of Albert
Lea, in which a passenger train was
thrown from the track by the break
ing of a steel rail, two passenger and
baggage car being hurled from the track a
distance of fifty feet upon the fence, leaving
the engine, the forward trucks of the tender
and the rear trucks of the sleeper in the rear
of the train on the track.
In one of these passenger cars was Mrs.
James S. Dunn, of Virginia, with six child
rem northward bound to join her husband
living at point above Helena, Montana,
some 1,400 miles from st. Paul, one of
which children, Chas. l.. Dunn, about eight
years old, was most horribly burned by the
overturning of the car stove with mass of
hot Goals upon him.
This unfortunate child was produced in
the court yesterday and presented a spec
tacle that made the heart sick His poor
hands were burned so that they turned up
from the wrist like claws, his arms and limbs
were shriveled up and mutilated most hor-
war; rlx- ,fFo
over his body were the terrible marks OF this
accident. Added to this his eyes,
short time after the accident,
fell from their sockets being literally roasted
! therein.
The testimony as given yesterday described
the accident as above and further went to
show that the train at the time of accident
was running at terrific rate of speed, and
on of great danger TO passing ladies, while
it was shown by the conductor that although
the air brakes were put on at once that the
engine moved COO feet forward after they
were applied.
There were many exceptions taken on the
part of the defence which were overruled by
Judge Brill, and ex-Gov. Davis
in his remarks to the jury were
based upon the inability of rail-
road corporations to guard against inevitable
accidents occurring from frosts, hidden de-
posts Of water, and from trebly tested ma
ehinery and rails before they were put in
use, and after careful examination of the
same daily. Yet he confessed that in all the
cases he had been in of this character, tnat
of this unfortunate child was the most pitiable
and heartrending.
Mr.. O'Brien, at the close of Mr.. Davis re-
marks, objected TO the defense putting in
certain dispositions taken in Chicago and
elsewhere in term time in September last
without notification to plaintiffs counsel,
their assent, OF notification after return of
the documents to st. Paul. AS on some of
the points taken the court was not clear, an
adjournment was taken to 80 a. N. to-day.