Los Angeles herald., 1891-09-20
General Hewitt Tells About
the Santa Monica Work.
The Electric Road to Sell Elec-
trio Power.
How Boy Saved Train Near YOrba
Station.
The Electric Road to Apply for Fran
chise to Sell POwer-Frank Cherry's
Account of the Tehechapi Ac-
cident-Notes.

General e. E. Hewitt, division super
intendent of the Southern Pacific COM
pany, returned yesterday from San
Francisco, where he had been on official
business.
To HERALD reporter General Hew-
lit said; "The work of.building the new
line at Santa Monica will commence
very soon now. 1t will be done entirely
by contract, and in day or two bids
will be advertised for, and the award
made. The company intend to push
the work as rapidly as possible.
TO SELL POWER.
The Consolidated Electric railway
company will, on Monday, apply to the
council for franchise permitting it to
sell electric power in this city. The i'm
portance of this proposition can hardly
be overestimated, for it means the plac-
ing of power at the disposal of manu-
facturers at a much less cost than they
can produce steam power Individually.
In fact it will greatly solve the question
OF the establishment of manufactures
here on a large scale. This company
has not had a graceful welcome in its
work, but it is destined to be one of the
greatest factors possible in this city. Its
next move will be the furnishing of
electric light at reasonable price. AL
together it would seem that it is about
time to stop trying to fight the company
on every proposition.
MORENO SAVED THE TRAIN.
While the south-bound freight train
on the Southern California railroad was
running at rapid rate along the route
in Bedrock caiion, above Yorba, on
Wednesday afternoon of last week it
narrowly escaped very serious acci-
dent, which was only averted by the
presence of mind of Mexican youth
named Moreno, says the Anaheim Ga
Zette.
Moreno had been at work in a corn
field above the head of the ditch, where
the railroad makes sharp bend around
the mountain side and where an OBJ
struction on the track cannot be seen
very far ahead. Suddenly he heard a
great rumbling noise, and wondering
what the commotion was all about, he
ran from the field toward the raiiroa d
track, where he found that great mass
of earth and rock had fallen from the
side OF the hill onto the track, COM
pletely covering it and running over the
roadbed into the river.
In moment Moreno heard the down
freight coming along in the caiIon above.
He ran on to meet it as fast as he could
and to warn it of the impending danger.
When quarter of mile above the
scene of the landslide the train swept
into view around one of the numerous
curves that line the track in the cafion,
and Moreno waved his arms vigorously
and yelled at the top of his voice to warn
the train of its danger. The engineer
reversed the engine, and as the train ran
rapidly around the curve above the land
slide he succeeded in staying its flight in
time to save it from disaster. Even as
it was, the cowcatcher poked its nose
into the obstruction on the track.
THE TEHACHAPI ACCIDENT.
MI. Frank w. Cherry, of this city,
was in the recent accident at Tehachapi
on the Southern Pacific road, and gave
the following account to a reporter of
the San Francisco Report:
"When we stopped at tunnel Is, on
A.
the conductor sent brakeman behind
to flag the rear train, and he ordered the
other (there were only two brakemen
for the heavy train) to 90 ahead and as
sist in removing the debris. The train
was left standing on grade Of 1l6 feet
to the mile, with nothing to hold it but
the air brakes. After we had stood for
awhile the party of us, which was in
ha fol 10 in
concluded that the Instructions had
been removed from the track, and that
we were going on our way; but just
on the ground, brought us to realize that
we were running away. We rushed out
upon the platform, and Just then the
conductor leaped to catch the rear end
Of the car ahead of the smoker. The
velocity of the train at this time was so
great that he missed his footing and
narrowly escaped being thrown under
the wheels. His feet swung around and
he got foothoid on the front platform
of the sleeper and then managed TO
cling on. He Immediately gave us
directions to put on the hand brakes as
our only chance for escape. We lost no
time in complying with his request but
whizzed past the debris, the boulder
which had fallen near the track carry
ing away all the steps on one side of the
train. We continued our mad career
down the grade. We finally got the
train stopped in tunnel 13, and found
that the engine had exhausted all but
two pounds OF steam in reversing on the
way down. We must have remained
here about two hours, during which
water was carried in buckets to supply
the boiler, and then we started for
Caliente. Just as the train got in mo-
tion the freight thundered into US from
behind.
"We ran through the train, reassur-
ing those who were excited, and reached
the two rear cars between which Colonel
Harney was crushed. The sight there
was appalling. The smoky tunnel was
dimly lighted with torch from the en-
CINE, and by its light the dying man