The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-10-29
a FEARFUL COLLISION.
Further Particulars of tho Terrible Rail
road Accident in New jersey.


road Accident in New jersey.
NEW YORK, October 20.-The new, of
yesterday is the terrible railway accident
on the Pennsylvania line. Although the
collision occurred soon after eight o'clock
Sunday evening, the meagerness of details
twelve hours afterward proves we have q
bowling wilderness in Jersey meadows
only three miles from the city hall as i'm
penetrable and as distant as the Sierra Ne
vadas. Though there are no fewer than
eight railway tracks at the point in qnes-
ton, there is not an habitable house in
either direction for miles The precise
spot of the collision was under coal shute
beyond the west end of Hackensack bridge.
An express train ran into an emigTant
train, knocking the cabOOse, that was at
The rear of the latter, across the east bound
tracks. Both trains were bound west. Be
fore the track could be protected across
which the caboose had been thrown. a pas
senger train of the Lehigh Valley road
came laundering up the east track. Ii
gplintered the already diSmantied caboOse
and was itself deraiied the engine plung-
ng down steep embankment and into
The mud, into which il settled four feet.
The baggage car followed the engine half
way down the bank, and the smoking car
eft the track. The emigrant train was
filed with passengers, many of them
women. After the immediate shock many
passengers joined the train hands in search
Of the hurt, to which they were guided by
he cries of the victims, The area of the
disaster was not more than the length OF
two cars. There was at once pulled ont
from under the cabOOSe one woman whose
head had been cut off. The other was the
cody of man crushed beyond recognition.
A man with his head bleeding crawled up
the bank from which the engine toppled.
He was Owen Hall, engineer of the Lehigh
express. The others were found IN the
cars. a woman lay on the floor near the
rear door in the cars that Immediately pre-
ceded the cabOose on the emigrant car,
which was telescOped. AS the men raised
her her leg dropped off of her dress. 1t had
been cut off al the thigh. Word was sent
to jersey City soon after the accident, and
ct nine O'Clock relief train arrived at the
scene, and with a portion of the dead and
wounded at once returned to jersey City
and another arrived to take its place, which
at ten o'clock went back with the rest OF
the dead and wounded. The accident was
caused By the delay of the emigrant train in
getting out Of the way. 1t had left Jersey
City at sos, the express following at S:25.
The emigrant train stopped at the shute for
coal, had loaded, and was backing slowly
when the express came along, not having
been warned by the operator at Block sta
ton or Marion. The bodies of two boys
and woman were found under a Lehigh
Valley engine. The bodies have not been
Identified. Thomas p. Pratt telegraph OPP
orator at Marion, has been arrested. Pratt,
who is twenty-SiX years old, is an expert
enced operator. He admits he did not give
the right signal. He says he was advised
by friends TO desert, but he refused to do
so. He is held to await the action OF the
COroner's jury. The three bodies discover
ed beneath the front of the Lehigh Valley
engine were brought to this city and placed
in the morgue. The woman is unknown
and unrecOgnizable. The two boys are APP
paTeutIy ten years of age. The tracks have
been cleared and trains are running on
schedule time. All that remains of the
wreck is the Lehigh Valley engine. which is
destroyed. 1t will be dug out
some time, and it is thought more bodies
will then be found. There have been eight
deaths in all, and most of the wounded
will, il is thought. die. The depot is sur
rounded by crowd waiting the news, and
great excitement prevails here. The
bodies at the morgue have not been identi-
fed.
JERSEY CITY, \. j., October 2O.-The
is full list of the dead as far az
known: Carl Henry Grommer, aged thirty
years, Norwegian, head off. He had three
tickets from New York to Battle Creek,
Mich, and papers showing that he arrived
Dy the steamer Elbe. An unknown boy,
aged eight years, horribly crushed. An
unknown woman, head off. Eulina Ar
-eares, aged twenty-siX years, who was on
her way to Madison. Wis, where her father
resides, died at ST. Francis Hospital. -Four
more bodies were found this morning under
the wrecked Lehigh Valley locomotive
They were not identified. Two unknown
boys were found under the pilot truck, one
aged eight years the other twelve An I'M
known woman, head and arms gone the re-
mains were badly ScOrched. An unknown
man, trunk burned to a crisp, found five
feet below the surface of the wreck. The
bodies were sent to Speer'S mOrgue.
In addition to the above, six are reported /
fatally and many Others more or less i'll
ured.