, 1888-06-02
PLACING THE BLAME.
The Coronsr's Jury Returns a Yer
dict on the Wreck.
Madsen and Hader Are Made
Responsible.
Testimony of the Train Dispatcher
About the Order.

paneled to investigate n cheyenne u
Northern tragedy of Decoration Day re-
sumed the task at 2 o'clock yesterday
afternoon. A number of railway men
and a legal representative of the company
occupied seats in the auditorium of the
council chamber and watched the proceed
ings with marked interest.
Fireman Earnest Heenan was recalled
and testified to the fatal result of the COL
lisiop, deposing as to the killing of Hader,
Reel and Mayfeld.
Train dispatcher Z. I. Duffey was the
next witness. He produced and verified a
copy of the order which Hader received
at Bordeaux. 1t was:
take your engine and flag up to the
wreck and get a report from Delaney.
w. A. s."
Delaney is the Union Pacific road
master at this point and was supervising
the removal of the wreck caused by the
washout. "W. A. S." is the signature
OF Chief Dispatcher VIA. Sisson.
Under this order Hader should have
detached the locomotive from north bound
train No. 101 and proceed onward at the
rate of four miles per hour with a brake
man equipped with a red flag one-qualter
of a mile in advance, except where the
| clear track could be seen for one-half a
mile ahead. Had the order been sent at
night or had the day been foggy the flag
man would have carried torpedoes, which
he would have attached to the rails when
desiring to attract attention. The ex-
p%losion, by contact with the wheels of the
locomotive, would have been a signal to
halt. In this case a departure from the
rule was not w~arrantable. An adherence
to its provisions was expected as a matter
of course. Mr.. Duffey stated that it was
the duty of the conductor to enforce OBJ
servance to this tagging rule, but that
the engineer was equally responsible for a
violation. 1t devolves upon a conductor
to exhibit all orders received to his engi-
neer. Conductor Hader left his only
brakeman in charge of the train at Bor-
deaux, but was vested with authority to
have Fireman Heenan act as flagman had
he SO elected. Mr.. Duffey knew of no
acknowledgement Of the receipt of the
above order by Hader. However, the ill
fated conductor spoke of his instructions
to Brakeman Fitz.
A violation of tagging orders, as given
| in the printed rules and understood by
employees of the road, would have sub
jected the non-observer to censure by his
superiors-
Earnest Heenan was placed upon the
stand for the third time. He did not
know whether or not Madsen had seen
the tagging order sent to Hader. Hee-
nan believed that his engineer was under
the impression that the locomotive was
entitled to a clear track. Witness had
worked with Madsen several months, and
had observed that he was always very
careful.
Dispatcher DuffeY being recalled and
questioned corroborated Conductor Kel-
ly's testimony as to that gentleman's or
ders with relation to management OF the
work train. According to Witness con,
struction of the rules, Mr.. Kelly should
have tagged back" to Bordeau in the
absence of a representative at that phint.
On being confronted with conflicting or
ders it was the duty Of Hador to advise
the Cheyenne Office and request explicit
instructions. Nevertheless, had he con
tinued onward under tagging orders no
harm would have resulted. The order
exhibited was not technically a command,
being simply an order to Conductor Ha-
der.
After celebrating about an hour the
jury returned the appended verdict:
TERRTToRY OF WYOMING, =,
COUNTY OF LARAMIE,
We, the jury in the foregoing case, find
that the deceased men, John w. Hader,
John T. Mayfield and Chas. Reel, came
to their deaths as a consequence of the
collision which occurred on the cheyenne
4 Northern branch of the Union Pacific
railroad on the Both day of May last, and
that said accident occurred by reason of
the failure on the part of Conductor John
w. Hader and Engineer Chris Madsen
to observe strictly the rules and regula-
tons of the Union Pacific Railroad com
pany applicable In this case), and in their
failure to observe strictly the Germs of the
message directing Conductor Hader to
flag to the wreck"
Warren Richardson, Foreman.
James P. Julien,
Noah p. Plant,
Frank A. Miller,
Hugo E. Buechner,