The morning call., 1890-07-14
INTO THE ABYSS
OF ETERNITY.
A Party of German Picnickers
Struck by q Train at Baden
Yesterday.
FIVE OF THEM ARE KILLED.
Singing Songs Just Before Meet.
ing Death.
FIVE OF THEM ARE KILLEl
Mrs. Roschmann's Brains Scraped
Out and Right Arm Wrenched
Off at the ShouIder-Heroic
Measures TO Save Life-Con-
Trajectory Statements of the
Cause.

A shocking accident occurred at Baden
Station, on the line Of the Southern Pacific
Railroad Company, at 4:30 o'clock yesler-
day afternoon and resulted in the death Of
five persons-three women and two chill
dren, and the injury Of five others.
No greater tragedy has ever taken place
in the history of the Coast Division of this
road, which is in charge of Superintendent
A. c. Bassett.
The catastrophe happened to party of
German picnickers who were returning
from their day Of pleasure, little dreaming
that the shadow of death was hanging over
so large a portion of their number and that
their hours of exhilerated enjoyment should
be followed by wailing and woe.
ANTICIPATED PLEASURES.
About a week ago picnic party was
arranged by Charles Roschmann, beer
bother for the Bavarian Brewery, Henry
Strobel. George Eberlin, c. Beach and
Others for days excursion to the Crystal
Springs dam in San Mateo County. About
forty people were invited to participate in
the affair.
The party made arrangements to be sup
piled on large scale with everything In
the way of solid and liquid refreshments,
the main beverage, however, being beer in
kegs and bottles. as a great number Of the
party were connected with different brew
cries in this city.
STARTING FOR AN OUTING.
The nucleus of the party left this city
about o'clock yesterday morning, taking
up the other persons invited as they went
along. There were three conveyances em-
ployed-two wagons and one cart, each
containing from twelve to fifteen persons.
One of the wagons was driven by Rosh-
mann, and the second by man named
Rozewitzer.
The course lay out the San Bruno road,
then along the beach to the Fourteen-mile
House, and then further on to the Seven
teen-mile House. The final destination,
however, was the Crystal Springs dam,
which was finally reached.
GAY AND FESTIVE.
Here the day was given up to unre-
strained enjoyment, dancing, singing and
drink king. The spirits of the party ex-
panded like the mercurial thread of ther-
mometer on warm day. Toward 3:3C
o'clock the party began to think of return
ing home and took the county road
Nothing trauspired of interest until Baden
was reached. The conveyances were then
progressing in the following order. First
came the cart, then the wagon driven by
Rosch mann, the wagon driven by Roze-
witzer bringing up the rear of the procession
of pcnickers. At the time they were all
laughing and singing, their mrth being
commented upon by passengers waiting at
the station for the train.
The cart passed over the crossing, which
is about hundred feet from the station
where the train slows up.
APPROACHING DEATH.
Next came Roscbmann's wagon with its
merry occupants. But it never crossed the
track.
A Menlo Park train, the one due in San
Francisco at 5:13 o'clock. struck the con-
veyance, crushing the frail structure like an
eggShell, and tossing its human freight
about like so many nine-pins.
The collision was q terrific one, and left
those who beheld it spellbound with horror.
A MODERN MIRACLE.
The cow-catcher struck the rear part of
the wagon. The driver had almost reached
the other side when the engine came thun-
dering along. 1t was just slowing up, but
the momentum was sufficient to cause the
destruction that followed.
One of the strangest facts connected with
the catastrophe was tHat tle nOTSeS at
tached to the wagon were uninjured. But
the cow-catcher made III for their escape
by carrying death among the occupants.
THREW OUT HIS CHILD.
Henry Strobel, who occupied the rear
part of the wagon with his wife and three
children, saw when too late that the wagon
could not escape collision. and he threw
his youngest child out on the roadway.
Then came the fatal encounter of the re-
cietlpsa lOPnmntiya and the fraUiip
ance with its fifteen occupants, who but a
minute before had been singing at the to D
of their voices. The women in the rear of
the wagon suffered most, as that was
where the cow-catcher struck.
HURLED INTO SPACE.
Shreks rent the air as the bodies of the
occupants went flying IN all directions,
falling upon the ground many feet away,
some dead, others with broken limbs, man
gled legs and heads cut.
Some cried feebly for help, others were
unconscious, and others slept the sleep that
knows no waking.
Henry Strobel was thrown thirty feet in
the air, but had miraculous escape, being
but slightly injured about the body.
One of his children was horribly man
gled, being but an unrecoguiZable mass of
flesh. His third child was sligatly injured.
IMMEDIATELY KILLED.
Mrs. Strobel was killed outright, her head
coming in contact with the hard ground
about fifteen feet away and being split
open.
Mrs. Rosehmann, the wife of the driver,
was thrown about twelve feet away, and
never spoke after her fall. She presented a
spectacle horrible to behold. Her skull was
laid open and the brain exposed, and one OF
her arms was literally torn from its socket.
A ten-year-old child Of Mrs. Roschmann
met with the same fate as its mother, being
crushed to DEATH
IA irI l. lodi hrC
Eberln, a cornice- maker working for
George Cronin, her death beingi caused by
injuries received about the head in her fall.
THE INJURED.
Among the injured were Charles Beach,
a teamster, George Eberlin, Lille Eberiin,
Mrs. Gesner, who received internal injuries,
Miss Beach, Miss Gesner and Otto Strobel,
7years of age
The driver, Roschmann, being in the front
seat, escaped with the horses. He was
thrown to the ground. but was only slightly
bruised.
Immediately after the collision scene of
indescrbable confusion ensued. The
frightened passengers knew by the shock
that something had happened. and thought
an accident had happened to the train. The
locomotive came to stop Immediately
after the collision. and the trainmen and
passengers did all they could to ease the
sufferings OF the injured.
TENDERLY CARED FOR.
The dead were tenderly cared for, and
were stretched out on the platform of
| the station, where their pallid faces
and mangled limbs were viewed by hun
| dreds. The train was delayed a half hour
while the unfortunate victims were being
| cared for.
Not far away from the scene Of the
| tragedy lay the silent burial ground known
| as Holy Cross Cemetery. 1t was a strange
| coincidence that the picnickers should have
| lost their lives SO near the burying grounds.
| They probably never thought how short wai
| the distance between the pleasure ground
| and the grave.
i L. IL donLl lalai