The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-09-30
FATAL CARELESSNESS.
Fearful Collision Of Two Freight
Trains.
Both Engineers Killed and q Large Num-
.ber OF Cattle Perish-The Wreck
Takes Fire and Nine Cars Are
Destroyed

KANSAS CITY, Mo-, Sept. 23.-The most
frightful wreck which has occurred on any
railroad iu this vicinity for long time
happened in dead Mans cut' on the
Missouri Pacific railroad. nineteen miles
east Of Kansas City. about 4:3O o'clock
yesterday morning. Two freight trains
came together with a terrific crash In a
head collision, and both engineers were
horribly mangled and instantly killed. The
cas- were piled on top of each other in a
mass twenty-five feet high and the wreck
caught fire Immediately. One of the trains
was loaded with cattle, and about ninety
head were killed outright or burned by the
fire, and two cars of wheat and one
of ice on the other train were
destroyed. In the opinion of Chief
Hale the loss will foot up almost
100000. The accident was caused by the
carelesSness of the operator at Greenwood,
who reported to the dispatcher that the east
bound train had not passed his station,
when in fact it had gone by. The east
bound train. No. 2S was in charge of Con-
ductor +. NJ. Mount Engineer James
DOwler and Fireman r F. AIcOrn. 1t con-
sisted of eighteen cars of grain and general
merchandise. The west bound train con-
sisted of twenty-five ears loaded with cat
tie, in charge of Conductor ROthaker. En-
gineer J. II. Lighter and Fireman j. w.
Calfus.
HOW 1T OCCURRED.
The west bound train had orders to run
TO Lees Summit 10 pass the east bound.
i. {. JamiSOn, the night operator at Green
wood, had been asked concerning the east
bound freight and he reported that it had
not passed his station. 1t is supposed that
he had been asleep when he was called up
and that the east bound freight had passed
without his knowledge. The run to Lees
Summit was long one for the west bound
train aud Engineer Dowler put a full head
of steam on and at the time the accident
occurred was pushing his engine forward at
the rate of fifteen miles an hour. The |
other train had slight grade to overcome,
but the time she was making was fully |
twelve miles an hour. dead Mans |
Curve" is quite deep cut with a
rock embankment nearly thirty-fYe feet high |
Oh one side and similar one ten feet high |
on the other side. The curve is the sharp !
est on the road, and in the daytime trains /
can not be perceived coming round it dis |
tance of over forty feet. 1t has always |
been regarded as one of the most danger
Gus places on The road, and its name was |
significant of wreck and disaster. The cut |
received its name on account OF a man who |
died of Asiatic cholera during the war hav-
ing been buried on the spot. Some years
since dreadful accident occurred at the
place Pnd the railroad men feared the spot.
The engineer on the iwest bound train
was running under orders to pass the other
freight at Blue tank, and he was making
speed for that point, suppOsing the east
bound freight was sidetracked there wait
ing for him. The night was quite dark and
both men we're keeping a sharp lookout az
they went into the curve, but the first inti-
nation either had of danger was when tie
headlight of each approaching engine swept
into view from around the curve. Both
men reversed and threw back the thTOtEles
and whistled the shril signal of danger Eli
gneer DOwler and his fireman both leaped
from the cab at once. The forward brake
man was Oh the tender and he leaped oil
at about the same time. AlcOni, the fire.
man, jumped to the side on which is the
lower embankment and succeeded in
getting out or danger, and the brake
man also got out of the way.
DOwer, however, tried for his life
VA NhC OlhNl SaOOs anu was SAdlHUcIilS up !
the steep and rocky bank when he lost his
hold and fell just as the trains came to-
gether and with them was buried. The
engineer OF the west bound train. j. Ii.
Lighter. was equally unfortunate. He per-
formed his duty like a hero and called TO
his fireman, j. w. CalfuS, to leap for his
life, and attempted to leap out of the cab.
lie stuck TO his post moment too long,
and at the crash he was unable to clear the
engine, and was buried together with his
brother engineer beneath the wreck. Cal
Ius, the fireman, narrowly escaped with his
life, being partially buried by the piling up
Of the cars. He was badly crushed and in-
jCred as it was. Themas Perrymau, who
had charge of the water tank at Little Blne,
was on the west bOunC train at the time,
going TO Lees Summit In leaping from
the train he broke his leg.
AWFUL SCENES.
The engines were "MOguls," which weigh
eighty-OHe TONS At the high rate of speed
both were going they went together with a
fearful crash and being so heavy they
crashed right through the iron and steel OF
the other. The west-bOund was going tine
faster of the two and it was slightly raised,
the parts of each as they appeared
after they forced themselves together looked
10 bilousu tiiSl hOlO htiucU III OIl6 piece.
The cars of both trains piled on top of each
other over the prostrate engines, and as the
deep cut prevented them from falling 10
the sides they raised themselves in a pyra.
mid over twenty-five feet high. Some bore
semblance to cars, but the most OF them
were nothing but mass of broken timbers
and iron. The front ten cars loaded
with cattle in the Nest-bound train be-
ing li,'hter than the heavily loaded
grain and Ice cars in the other train were
thrown in one unshapely mass over the
believing with fright. With nearly fifteen
cars and the engines piled up in one un-
shapely mass the scene beggars description.
10 add TO the fearful fright and terror of
both the men and animals the fire in the
engines soon communicated to the ears and
IN very little while the flames had spread
ind enyeloped the whole mass. There
we're nearly ninety head of cattle in The
;ars which had gone over the engines.
Part of them had escaped from the cars
which had broken but the most of them
we're roasted in the fire which soon became
aging. Being in the deep cut there wasno
,hance for the cattle getting out and they
oerished uttering the peculiar noises naIle
~ animals in mortal terror.
New Ulm (Minn.) is probably the
only city on the continent in which
German is the official language of the
council. The mayor and