The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1890-02-08


brought to their dwellings, cut off the
gum boots, and dressed their wounds i
the best manner known to human sgmps
thy. Florence Nightingale could nc
have done more, and such women will
10 | live in memory while gratitude lasts o
nj | The nobility of mankind exists
Section Foreman Reynolds, although
ninrrd in the accident and Pat
rick Welch worked in water up to thei
waists to rescue the the men from the ca
boosp, and after the men had been taker
out Reynolds had to be helped himself
He had worked in the water so long that
he was unable to move from his position
The following is the evidence taken by
Coroner William Michel, and the verdict
Of the jury:
COroners Iuquest.
Mr.. VIM. Michel, coroner, impanelled
the following jury of inquest: E. P. Nash,
| J. A. Hamilton, j. F. Atwell, John Frana,
Alex Watt, Peter Moran.
After the jury were duly sworn, the wit
nesses were examined:
JOHN GEORGE
After being duly sworn, deposed and said. I
i've in Albina. My occupation is engineer
of engine $50. We LETT here about a. m.
on Feb. I'd. We encountered good deal of
| trouble getting down, then we had to stop
second time, and the speed did not exceed
more than four to six miles an hour at any
time. There is bad piece of track this
! side of where the wreck occurred. l slowed
down then to about three miles an hour. l
started again and don't think it was more
than about three hundred yards to where
the bridge was, and it was perfectly straight
and nothing to indicate that anything was
wrong. Went on the bridge at the rate of
four miles an hour, and when on the middle
of the bridge the timber began to crack and
felt my engine going down. l opened the
went through the bridge, and engine just
rested on bent west of break. I was going
west, and had about l20 pounds Of steam
| on the engine. Before leaving here had
no instruction from Mr.. Glenn about the
condition of the road. On the way between
here and there he told Inc to run very care
| fully as the track was in a bad condition.
He said nothing about the bridge being in
bad condition. I do not think it possible for
the bridge to be perfectly straight when
| the bents were gone. 1 think the bents |
were in place when l struck the bridge. |
1 think one of the bents is under the |
wreck and one lays partly to the right |
of the wreck. After l had left here l met
man about two miles from the Locks. / |
asked him how the track was, and he said it
was all right. I don't know whether he
came from the east or west. The accident
occurred between 7.30 and s A. NJ. If I
had not pulled my engine wide open she
would have gone through the bridge, when
was about thirty feet high. went through
the window of my engine on the left side,
onto the ground. This was after my en-
gine had stopped. The train consisted of
engine and caboose filled with laboring men
to clear the track.
PATRICK GLENN.
I am division road master. When 1 got out
here I found the men waiting, and the en-
gine and cabcose standing in front of depot.
I told the men to get on the caboose. The
section foreman, Mr.. Casey, told me that
the watchinan had come in and reported the
track unsafe about one-half mile west of
here. l told the conductor to come to
stop about the whistling post this side of
the place, and, after we got down to that
break we got the men of, and went over the
track and thought it safe to pass over.
Then we got on the caboose, and went slow
ly to the next side. Passing over bridge
6S the engine, tender and caboose broke
through, and went into the creek. l was
sitting about midway of the caboose, when
it went down. l was caught under a truck,
and l think one or two men fell across my
legs. I managed to scramble ont, and
asked think Mr.. George to go TO the Locks
and get help. 1 sent Mr.. Georges fireman
to Bonnevilleafter the bridgemen and to get
some rope. I went down to Mr.. Williams
fishery, and woke up three men there, and
got some axes to help get the men out of
the caboose. After that urged every man
around that could do anything to assist the
wounded men. There must have been
about 25 or 80 men in the caboose. 1t is
part of my duty to look. out for bridges and
report unsafe ones to the bridge superintend-
ent. I passed over this bridge ON foot
about 6 o'clock before the accident occurred,
and thought it safe. In fact, / did not
expect a washout there, as I have been on
the road since 1882 and never saw that
bridge wash cut before. This bridge has
been rebuilt since it was first constructed
think if piling had been driven 1t would
have been more substantial than using mud.
sills; but they could not drive piling OH ac-
count of large bolders being In the creek.
As near as l can tell part of the old timbers
in the portage railway was sold to Mr..
Williams aud part cut up for blocking.
did not consider it bad and have ,
heard no one say it was. The bent
gave way first in the center of the creek. as
near as 1 can tell. My opinion is that what
ever the mudsill rested on had washed out.
IL ID LuS uuty vi Vic tTdCh hdlheT ~ al | ,
times to protect the train as far as he can
on his beat during his hours of wvrK.
c. B. AVERY
/ am locomotive fireman engine $50, and |
live at The Dalles We left here yesterday
morning between and o'clock, as near as I
l can Judge, and proceeded down about one
half mile, and then we stopped and let the ,
men off to shovel slide, and thought the1
track in shape. Then we proceeded west
again at the rate OF five or six miles per
hour, until We came within mile or SO of
the bridge. The engineer then slowed down ]
again, at the rate of about three miles per
hour, while passing bad piece of track.
We kept ON gong until we went through
the bridge, and at about the same rate of
speed. was standing ON the deck Of the
engine at the time of the accident. When !
heard the bridge crack, looked around
and saw the head brakeman was gone He
was standing 40 the gangway of the engine4
at the time. made my escape at the les
hand side window, the engineer following
me. There was a man standing one half
mile below here with white and green
lamp. l suppose he was track walker.
Have been on the road fifteen months, and
have not seen the men work on that bridge
during that time; but during most of the
time have been working on the other divi-
sion, e&ceptinS tue last Two montnS.
B. C. LIMERICK
am brakeman and live in Albina. When ,
we came to the bridge that broke in we
were going about three or four miles an
hour l was standing in the gangway be-
tween the engine and tank, looking ahead
for bad track and breaks or slides and while
passing on the bridge it broke about the
middle, should judge. letting tank and
caboose through into the creek. was on
the left hand side of the engineer and
jumped off We met one or two men after
leaYing the slide, but do not know whether
they were track.walkers or not. Did not
hear them say anything or give any signal
of danger. After got out of the water
and on the track. I hallooed to the en-.
gineer to throw the bell rope over to the
men who were on the track to assist in get
ting the men out of the caboose, and then
started to the Locks for assistance. About
one mile below here overlook the track
walker, and told him what had happened
Told him to 60 to the Locks and get engine
and caboose that was there, and procure
what assistance he could and get back as
soon as possible. l followed him to the
Locks and reported to agent and conductor
there.
PATRICK WEIGH
I reside at the Cascade Locks, and my oc.
oupatinn Ia track walker Yastarday r,or.