Los Angeles herald., 1891-07-27
Sad Results of the Middle
town Disaster.
Three Persons Killed Outright
in the Wreck.
Four of the Injured in Critical
Condition.
Many Others Suffering from Severe Cuts
and Bruises-Two More Rear End
C0llisfOns-A Disaster in
Tennessee.
Associated Press Dispatches.


a day OF gloom in this city, caused by
the awful disaster to Cincinnati,
Hamilton and Dayton excursion train,
at Middletown, last night. Three per-
sons were killed outright-William
Matthews, aged 13; Lydia FREEZER, aged
%; Frank Simonef, aged II. Four of
the injured are in a critical condition
Joseph B. Clevel, Frank Patterson,
Joseph HI. Sweverly. The follow
ing persons were seriously, but
it is thought not fatally, hurt: Warren
Thompson, Mary Rees, Fred Weidner,
Mark limerick, Edith Tuttle, R. s. Tut
tie, Kate Schlein, Elder M. Reason and
wife, Frank Reiger, VIM. Oman,~ Mary
Gram, Annie Venard, Samuel Lohr,
Charles Myers, Maggie Frost, Annie
Brennan, Pearl Shorthill. About twen-
ty more received painful bruises and
cuts.
HOW THE CRASH CAME.
William G.. Douglass, one of the COM
mitteemen in charge OF the Cincinnati,
Hamilton and Dayton excursion to
Woodsdale, tells this story of the Satur-
day night wreck: A draw bar about
the middle of the excursion train broke,
and they stopped at Middletown half an
hour to patch it up. Red lights were
not promptly placed on the rear car, and
just as the train was pulling out, a
heav7 freight came in at high rate Of
speed. Engineer Schwind saw the flag
man waving danger signal, and i'm
mediately called for brakes, shut off
steam, and, with the fireman, jumped.
1t was too late to stop the freight. An
instant later the crash came.
CRUSHED HUMANITY.
The two rear cars of the excursion
train were hurled into the ditch. The
next coach was struck fairly in the end,
and the locomotive pushing under, ele-
waited it to an angle OF fnrty-five degrees,
and there it stood filled with shrieking
people. This car caught fire, but EnRi-
neer Schwind and the fireman were able
to extinguish the blaze by the use of a
hose from the locomotives. Two cars
Law crushed in the ditch, with mass of
manned and mangled people, moaning
in agony, pleading for help.
THE REsCUERs AT WORK.
The rescuers set to work at once, to
extricate them. Legs, arms and
heads could be seen through the
broken windows, or pinned un-
der the wreck. The means
of helpless sufferers were mingled with
the frantic cries of mothers, seeking
husbands and children. Many OF them
had been cut by glass and timbers in the
rush to escape, and bloody faces and
hands bore CHASTITY testimony to the
great number of injured. Physicians
and citizens of Middletown were soon at
the scene to join in rescuing the unfor-
tunates. The terror-stricken excursion
lists were made comfortable in houses.
The three dead persons were properly
cared for, and the injured received all
necessary attention.
MORE REAR END COLLISIONS.
A rear end collision Of Big Four
freight trains occurred near Galiot,
Ohio, this morning, wrecking number
of cars and scattering the goods all
around. The engineer and fireman Of
the rear train escaped by jumping, but
were seriously injured.
A rear end collision occurred on the
Erie railway, near Red Kay, N. Y, last
night, but the extent of the damage il
not known.
STRUCK A COW.
CHATTANOOGA. July 26.-A suburban
train on the Chattanooga, Rome and
Columbus road struck COW near Mis-
sion Ridge last night. The engine wat
derailed, Fireman Lewis Potts killed
and Engineer Burchell fatally injured.