, 1889-10-10
TWOMBLY WAS DRUNK.
His Fireman Breaks Down and
Contesses That He Peri ured
Himself.
The Coronor's Jury Holds Both
Men to the Grand
Jury.

as,or concluded its work yesterday by
holding Twombly, the engineer, aud
l.c Clochc, the fireman of the freight
engine, responsible for the accident.
The crowning feature of the inyestiga-
ton was the confession of Fireman lc
Clochc, made after the verdict was
brought in, in which he admitted that
his testimony was false and that Twom-
bly, was drunk the night of the accident.
The inquest was held In Judge McCun-
nelis courtroom, from which all the
railway employees We're excluded. Dl'
vision Superintendent Chamberlain said
he blamed the conductor and the eugi.
necr of the freight train Tie former
should not have permitted the train to
get ahead of time and the latter ought
to have seen the sCmaphurc. IWOmDly
had been discharged for being drunk,
but his father, vino had CharSc Of tie
engineers, rcinstated Linn.
General Superintendent ii. f. Royce
said: 81 have partially investigated
the accident and / am Inclined 70 be-
lievo that Conductor BuloW ANA Ingi'
nccr Twombly are responsible Tor II.
Bu'orl Is responsible for failing tO aCtu-
ally control his train
Tho afternoon proceedings Indicated
that Twombly, the engineer Ot the
| freight train, WIS sober when lac took
| the train cut oi Chicugoi that the dan
ger signal ON the ,cmnphoro Was set
/ against hi, trdin, hut thAt thinking the
| track was clear ahead of him, because
lie Jaw lao train lights hc uisrcNtlit d
the scmaphurc, and the wreck resulted.
William Il. Parker engineer of the
/ tolcsCup.d passenger said the hght waH
very clear ON the scmaphorc. 1T was
| visible nearly TO Auhurn.
johnson Colyin, aud II. W. Kenyon,
| foreman OF the round.house at Forty
/ seventh street, testified that they had
/ known TWomnly to got drunk,
! James |. Clark, "a board of trade man,
I living al Washington Heights, testified
| that passenger, who Travelled OH the
Washington Heights cars were con
stmtiy In fear of being run into by the
| fast freight which followed them. They
! had frequently made comnlaints through
| the press, nat had maze no complaints
TO he management.
! When Mir. Thomas II IwOmnly,
/ father of the engineer, was called, every
| eye was upon him IL was clearly the
/ determination oil Deputy Coroner Mon
/ aghan To- show that Engineer Iwombly
| had been re-insta'cd and held iu his
| place through the influence of his father.
/ 81 discharged my son ON my Own ro-
| -pouSibiDitv,n he saiu. That WAS for
/ drinking Two ar three times before !
had laid him oil for the same cause.
When rcinstttcd him, | did 80 ou the
recommendation OF Mr. kimhall, assist
/ ant to the president of the Rock -laud
rotd. | saw him at $3.50 o'clock the
/ afternoon of the accident and lac was
/ perfectly sober then.
] Il ID. fsip uuf1 lao
| had seen Iowmhly twenty-five minute.
/ before he lett aud hc wac perfectly Sorcr.
| There were no signs Of fliquor about him
thai the witness saw.
| John Ioutz, William Weicknan, Rob
crt Il. Thur5tun and GustuJ Schneider
/ testified that the danger signal WAS set
ut the time of the accident, and that the
: freight train ran past 1t ut high rtte of
speed.
The jury retired for dclibcTation at
i.l5 o',lock to Coroner ilertls private
office and brou!ht i'm Its verdict AT G;3O
1t wrs: "rhc victims, William ~ Mul.
cachy, pulphue Ward, Jay W, Mckcn
lic, Frederick liippner, sadie Kelly and
I isabella Brown, came TO thor deaths
| from shock and injuries received iy be
I ing caught in u passenger coach de.
tachcd from train 80. ~, which was run
/ into 10y engine No ilh, drawing freight
/ train 80. 81, belonging to tie Chicago,
Rock .lnnd Il Puri6G Railroad Com.
/ pauy, ON their tracks vt South Engle-
/ wood, September A
We, the jury, believe from the ovi.
dcncc produced that Engineer Seth
TweinhIt and Fireman Lc Cloche are re-.
spousiblc for this accident uud recon-
mend that they he committed 10 the
/ county jail until discharged by due
+ course OF law; We recommend that Con
I ductur BulOrd OF train 81 bD severely
4 cuu-urcd for NOT communicating vita
. hi Cn-inCCr when ht lU.ud him run
ming aicad Of schedule time. We fur,
thcr believe that the conductor, col.
/ lcctor and brakeman of the passenger
/ train b7 should he severely ce1-urod
| Tor negligence and noy- performance ol
their duty in not leaving daNrer lights
ON the rear detached COuCh W.
F. further believe that the officials of the
I Chicago, Rock Island u Pacific rail
/ road should as public servants be
| awake to public interests ana see
| that the rules are rl-idly enforced rcla.
| two To- protecting trains and running
/ vii where switches are numerous. And
| in the interest of safety To- the public,
I we believe that additional protection 10
| life and limb would he procured hy de
mpnding of their employees u more faith
/ iul performance of duty and Observance
| of their rules. We cannot too severely
| censuu the company for not. iucoTpur.
ating in their infringement thr necessary
I precautionary measures in this regard.
/ The sensation of tlc whole lnVestiga.
| tion was received after the verdict hold.
| ing Engineer Twombly and Fireman l.o
| Clocho to the grand jury had been re.
! turned. The testimony showed that
| Twombly WAS perfectly sober, and when
| the jury were dciDcrating un the verdict
] they were puzHlod TO see how lac could
| have run straight at the danger signal at
| the speed he did il Inc were sober and
sane. lie Cloche had testified that
Twombly was perfectly sober and that
neither Of them saw the light until
Within about three car lengths Of II.
| Coroner Sivcrson rcnd it, and when hC
| came 10 the part holding lie Cloche re.
| sponsible with the engineer he blanchcd
| vlsihly. and asked Lieutenant licaly OF
| the Town of Lake, who has worked up
the case. 10 step outside with him. When
| they returned I.o CloChe said II said
/ OH The witness stand that ! didn't see
the red light until we go right onto it,
/ bat that was not 80.
"Well why didn't yon tell the truth
| on the standP said Srycrson.
"Wsll, | was excited and titled, and
hardly knew what was saying" " said
| I.c Clochc, aud he broke down crying
| After he had quieted down he talked
| with Lieutenant liealy again, audiinully
| told him he wanted To make a clean
| breast of IL, that ho had falslicd to pro.
| tect TwomDly, and now that lac had
| started To tell the truth he might as well
tell the rest of II.
Lieutenant Hcaly, in the presence cI
the reporters and deputy corcners then
the influence of liquor the night Of the
] uaaiIant 90