Morning journal and courier., 1888-06-05
THE AIR LINE SMASH UP.

l to any extent.
 THE AIR LINE SMASH UP. ] The Death of Conductor Stebbins-The Body Taken tO Ills Fathers In Che- l shfre-The Freight Dfspatcher,s Un. fortunate Position.
 It is almost assured that the terrible acei- I dent on the Air Line road yesterday which resulted in the death of Conductor Charles H. Stebbins and the destruction of two loco I motives and seven freight cars was due to an { unfortunate blunder on the part of the night freight dispatcher, Frank W. Gibbs. He WAS not in his office at the depot when ! the day operators arrived and some believed ! that he was overcome with terror at the out come of his error and fled, but Attorney P. W. Chase said last evening that Gibbs was \ in town at his home and prostrated owing to | what had occurred.
 The collision happened at Leonard's Bridge, station on the Air Line branch about eight miles from WiIlimantic. It was two o'clock in the morning when the two extra freight trains came together. One left New Haven between 10 and Il, with Con duetor Stebbins in charge and z. Bennett engineer. The last order Conductor Steb- bins received for his train of fourteen cars was from Operator Gibbs. The conductor was dirested to continue on to Willimantie, no mention being made of going on side track either at Leonard's Bridge or Turner vile, the next station west. H. $. Ford, conductor, and Fred Eager, engineer, both from New Haven, were in charge of the west bound train from Willimantic Conductor Ford was ordered to take his train of twenty two cars direct to New Haven.
 Instead of providing Conductor Stebbins with an order to run into the siding at Tur- nersvile, the siding at Leonard's Bridge not being long enough to accommodate twenty two cars, the train dispatcher gave him one to the very contrary, and when his train reached Turnersville it continued right along, the crew of the train being in total Ignorance of the proximity of the west-bound freight. There is a steep grade at Leonards Bridge. While one train was crawling up that grade from the Willimantic side the other had reached the top of the grade and went tearing down to an unavoidable collision. The speed of the twenty-two cars could not be slackened, and Conductor Ford's train was making fast progress up the grade Every man on both trains was conscious that col- lision was at hand, and every man but Con ductor Stebbins jumped from the fatal cars.
 It is thought that he was paralyzsd at what
 seemed certain doom and could not stir. It is further known, however, that he was Q constant sufferer from rheumatism, and if he had been able to save himself his knowledge of the movements and speed of railroad trains would have served him as well as his com paniors.
 Again, it is thought he might have been in the cab with Engineer Bennett, and being told to jump when the others did, be was not able to do so with sufficient vigor, owing to rheumatic troubles. Nevertheless, he was found by the wrecking train in pitiable condition, damned to death between Q freight o1,a1i ir, k01o I-raoo ed III tine side of his head and his body other wise disfgured.
 What Gibbs did when he discovered his mistake is not known. He was aware that the trains must crash into each other, and \ there was possibility of recalling the or der The rumor that he was intoxicated and | fell asleep is undoubtedly false for he had not drank in year, so reports say. There were five special trains on the road l that night, and it is probable that the train I from New Haven had the right of way. When | the west bound train was started from Willi- | mantle empty it was probably given the right | of way by the train dispatcher, who counted | on catching the east bound train at Turner | vile or some station this side, and instruct \ ing Conductor Stebbins to lay over until the ! west bound train had passed. Probably he | was unabls to catch the east bound train at any of these stations and the collision re-
 suited.
 | Conductor Stebbins was thirty years old and very popular on the road. He boarded
 at the Fremont House in this city.
 The members of the Order of Railway Conductors met at the depot as soon as il ! was certain as to Conductor Stebbins' death | and appointed Conductor Ostrander of the New York division as a committee 70 take charge of the remains of their deceased conn
 rade.
 The body was removed to an undertaker'e in Willimantic and brought to this city on T lN~.a .lE | o'clock, but which was yesterday over half
 an hour late. From the appearance of the
 body of the unfortunate man, death must | have been instantaneous.
 Conductor Stebbins' father met the body
 at the depot and took it to his home in Cheshire.
 As far as can be ascertained the west | bound train, which was drawn by locomo- tive No. 9G, in charge of Engineer Frederick 0. Eager and Fireman Bramble, was manned
 by Conductor H. o. Ford and Brakemen Dunn, Barber and Mccarthy, all of whom
 with the exception of DunnA who was bruised and cut about the head and body, escaped without serious injury. The east bound train was drawn by locomotive No. IFS, in charge of Engineer z. s. Bennett and Fire man Stanley Hall, and was manned by Con- ductor Charles H. Stebbins, Head Brakeman Alfred Cheney and two others whose names ! could not be aseertained.
  b1akemen were seriously injured, but it has
 been ascertained that Brakeman Cheney, of | the east bound train, had sustained broken | shoulder and internal injuries, which, it was feared, would result fatally.
 Hundreds of people have been to view the
 scene of the wreck, ,,which is little west of Cheesboro' cut. Eight of the cars were piled I upon the two locomotives, and the others lie | derailed in demolished heap. The tender | of engine 96 is thrown upon the top of the | boiler, and engine 196 seems to have only the pilot damaged. The tracks are clear now, | and trains will run on schedule time. ! Frank Gibbs is supposed to be of good habits and skillful operator. He resided at | 19 Court street. He was formerly in charge of the Baltimore and Ohio telegraph office, and was for many years in the employ of the | Connecticut Western railroad company. His unfortunate situation makes him liable on | a charge of manslaughter.
 Gibbs Was CrImInally Careless. 1 NORWICH, Conn, June 4.-Coroner A. F. | Park, of this city, was summoned to Willi- mantle to-day to hold an inquest over the body of Conductor Charles H. Stebbins, who l was killed in the railroad accident at Leon- | ards station this morning. He rendered the I following verdict:
 "That the accident with the loss of most VaIueu AIe anu BioaU uoInoso OA PAoPoAV AS chargeable to the criminal carelessness of Frank w. Gibbs, night train dispatcher at New Haven, who sent out a loaded freight train from New Haven with orders to go through to Willimantic. and later started by telegraph another freight. train from Willi- mantle with orders to go through to New Haven After having started both trains, which must meet somewhere on the line of the railroad with greater or less damage, be perceived and confessed that de had made 6 mistake, and was no more ten." Shocking AccI@ent. So read the Headlines many a newspa per column, and we pes zith palpitating interest the details o atas strophe, and
 are deeply impresse acr1hce or hu- man lives involved ausands or men
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