The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1890-10-23
AN UNKNOWN HERO.
A Man Risks His Own Life to
Save Another
IN A TERRIBLE RAILROAD WRECK.
His Efforts Were Of no Avail The Messages
Of the Dying Man to His Family
and Friends.

Ion occurred at 40 o'clock this morning
on the Cincinnati g. Southern railway in
tunnel quarter Of mile north of Sloan's
Valley station, between freight and pas
senger train. The latter left Cincinnati at
p. m. Another passenger train left Gin
cinnati an hour earlier.
Both of these were held at Somerset,
KY, two hours or more on account of
freight wreck south of that place last night.
When the track was clear the foremost
Cincinnati train started out from Somer
set first and met and passed safely the
northbound freight. Then the other pas
Senger started out.
When the first Cincinnati train passed
out the crew of the freight appeared 10
have overlooked the fact that another was
to follow and they pulled out and started
northward. Less than quarter of mile
away they entered the tunnel, one sixth OF
a mile long.
1t was the most hopeless place for train
ever to meet death. The engines of the two
trains dashed into each other and the cars
followed. A horrible confiagration fol-
lowed
Firemen Gould and Welsh, Brakeman
John b. Montgomery, Express Messenger
Edward Rutfner, and the mail agent were
| killed. Engineer Taylor, of the passenger
were badly burned. The baggagemaster
was injured. No passengers were killed.
Ii any were injured their names have not
| ySt been aScertainedt
| Later Young Paine, commercial trav
| eier, had both legs crushed, and has since
| died
| The delay to passenger trains by another
wreck was caused bv mistake of the en-
gineer and conductor of the freight train.
| fol- no troj nt
entirely gone into the tunnel when the
crash came, and so the three aleepers,
which did not leave the track, served as a
means of escape for the passengers All
of the train except the three sleepers was
burned.
Mail Agent Gayle is living but badly
burned. Mail Agent Doeger is missing and
is supposed to have been burned to death.
Engineer John Pimlott died this after
noon, making the six victims of the tunnel
collision as follows: John Pimlott, engi-
neer; Fireman Welsh, Somerset KY. :;
Fireman Gould, Ludlow, KY; Brakeman
John E.. Montgomery, Albany, N. Y;
Postal Clerk G.. L. Doeger, Cincinnati, o.
Express Messenger Ed P. Ruffner, Gin
cinnati, o. Severe injuries: Baggage
master John r. Long, Newport, KY. Sc
we're injuries, passengers: w. d. Wheeler,
New Orleans, La; Miss Ollie Getty, Day
ton, Tenn. Arch Murphy, Madison county.
Ind. The injuries sustained by the three
! last named are slight.
| From the stories of the railroad men who
arrived here tonight, it appears the wreck
was due to the carelessnesS of the crew OF
freight train No %. This train was in
structed to wait at Sloan's Valley until
passenger trains 9 and 5 had passed. The
wait was long and the crew of the freight
train went to sleep. Engineer Pimlotce
Weakened up just after No. passed
4 and assuming it to be No. and
that the road was clear, aroused the
crew and the train went on. The approaches
to both ends of the tunnel are sharpely
curved and within hundred feet of the
mouth of it the trains met. Only the
sleeper and one coach of the passenger
train were saved. The train hands anC
passengers pushed them back up the track
The flames started few minutes after
the collision and the wooden lining of the
tunnel is still burning tonight. a brave
man. whose name was not learned, hear
ing the cries of George Long, in the bag
; gage car. seized an axe, cut a hole in tn,
Car and rescued Long.
In the express compartment Of the ca
was E. P. Ruffner, United States expires
messenger unknown here, and he worke,
hard to cut a way for Ruffner to escape, al
, though the flames were all about him. Th
effort was futile and Ruffner fnall
shouted from his prison to so ava
and save himself, to say good-by
+ to his family and tell ther
= his would-be rescuer did all a ma
could do to save his life. The Ut
5 known hero staggered out of the tunne
> with his hair and clothing badly sorche
! and fell down in a dead faint. None of tn
men in the excitement thought of learnin
his name, but it is believed he is a railroa
, man. Others of the trainmen had wonder
full escapes. 1t is miraculous that any Q
the passengers escaped without injury.