Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1886-10-06
The Railway Accident.
The following communication appeared
in The Milwaukee Sentinel of October 4 f:


WATERFOWL, Sept. 80, 1886.
To the Editor OF The Senttnel:-In the account
OF the accident at Ixonia on Tuesday night, pub
l1Shed In this mornings Sentinel, your CORE
spOndent neglected to give all the facts The
collision occurred shortly after o'clock, and
Mr.. Morrill, died in less than an hour after being
injured. His corpse was taken to Watertown,
an undertaken summoned in the night, the body
encased in coffin before daylight, and shipped
out on the early morning express. The coroner
was not notified, and no effort was made to as
certain the cause of the accident. or whether
any one was criminally responsible for his death.
The railway officials here either violated the
state law, in not summOning coroner, through
ignorance, or they may have thought that if the
body of the unfortunate man was shipped to
Maine. 1900 miles away, they might be able to
cover up the laundering or carelessness of the
train men. In any case it was decidedly dark
lantern procedure, and looks as if the company
was afraid to allow the facts to be made public
by legal investigation. If railway officials
were answerable to the laws as they are to their
superiors and somebody was punished when
ever an avoidable accident occurs, travelling by
rail would be much safer than it is at present.
If the relatives of the unfortunate man intend
suing the company for damages the official
action here has made 1t easy for them to obtain
verdict, and it is to be regretted that some one
will not have to stand a trial for manslaughter
as well. w. F. WHITE, M. d.
The following statement from the
physicians in charge of the case is pub
lished in The Sentinel of this morning:
WATERFOWL, Oct. 4, 1856.
To the Editor of The Sentinel-In the commune
cation from DIR. W. +. Whyte in regard to the
railroad accident near Ixonia. that was pub
lished in The Sentinel of the 4th inst, several
misstatements are made. Mr.. Morrill, did not
die for two hours after the accident occurred,
and the surgeons who were summoned were
present at the time of his death. they giving q
certificate a. to the cause of his death before the
body could be shipped. It was at the request of
~ fhnr nf hot In6Q a Qr
was summoned and the body embalmed as soon
tertown. The railroad company left the
sleeper in which the body lay with two
porters and telegraped the agent here to do
everything possible that was to be done.
1t is true, the coroner was not summoned,
but no inquest was desired by the brother
of the deceased; and it was by his own
wish and desire that the body was shipped east
on the early morning train, the train leaving
here about A. n. BY going on this train good
connections could be made over the entire route.
Mr.. Collins, the Division Superintendent land
A. J. Earring, the Assistant General Superin-
tendon, were here long before the body AID the
surviving brother started east, and we under
stand furnished transportation for both as tar as
possible. That there was any OZARK lantern"
business we fail to see. M. Morrill, expressed
himself to ourselves as highly pleased with the
courtesy and attention with which he had been
used. That it was deplorable accident, 10 one
will deny; hut we belive in having facts stated
as they are, rather than misrepresented by those
whose only source of information is hearsay.
F. G. MOULDING, M. D.,
w. C. SPALDING, NJ. D.,
Surgeons in charge of the case,