Morning journal and courier., 1891-02-21

car cook.
Matthew Lynn, cleaner, No. AS West
Fifty-sixth street.
William Brown, cleaner. No. 1900 Park
avenue. ss-
--, q New York newsboy,
name unknown.
--, an unknown woman, one
of the cleaners.
THE NEW HAVEN TRAINS PASSENGERS.
The New Haven train was heavy enough
to expend its force upon the empty cars,
AID thus its passengers and train men
escaped with slight injuries. After extri-
eating itself from the wreckage the New
Haven train backed down to the yard at
Forty-second street and discharged such
passengers as had not got out. Most of
them waited for trainsNo. 5, which started
from the station at eight o'clock, and
which was an express, but had orders to
stop at all stations where the 1909 train
would have stopped.
HELPING AT THE WRECK.
Claude Burard of Messrs Tiffany & Co.
was on his way to work from his home at
No. "a West Eighty-ffth street, and heard
a crash as if the building had fallen. The
next moment he heard an agonized cry for
help. Four young men who were In the
neighborhood ran to Mr.. Burad's side.
They all rushed around to Eighty-6fth
street and took ladder from a building
in the course of erection. They placed it
over the iron railing which surrounds the
openings in the tunnel and lowered it
down the opening whence the cries of dis
tress came.
EXPLOSIONS.
During the first fifteen minutes after the
collision two explosions were heard, caused
by the blowing out of cylinder head of a
locomotive. This was the eight" locomo-
tive, which had no cars attached. 1t was
thrown from the rails when it collided
with the New Haven train. Engineer
Fowler of the New Haven train had his
hand slightly cut by the force of the col
lision. He cried for help as he jumped
out of the cab, and the conductor, Hutch
ings, while going to his rescue, Just escaped
being run down by the locomotive that
was a moment after thrown from the
track.
THE NEW HAVEN LOCOMOTIVE.
The cowcatcher of the New Haven loco
motive was badly shattered and the head
light was torn off, but the locomotive is
otherwise uninjured. The rear of the
third car of the "shop" train-a Wagner
sleeper-was badly wrecked.
THE INVESTIGATION.
The statements Of the signaller, the en-
gineer and the fireman will be the subject
of strict investigation, of course, in order
to determine upon whom the blame for the
accident rests If the engineer got the
clear signal at Seventy second street, il
| would intimate that the track between
| that point and Eighty-sixth street was un.
obstructed, as that forms one of the
! "blocks" of the line. According tc
the rules governing the roads engi-
| neers, the New Haven train should
not have passed Seventy-second street
until the next block was clear
l The wrecked train was made up of the carl
| express that arrived at the Grand Contra
! depot yesterday morning at Gal. They
were being sent to the Mott Haven yard
and on the way the cleaners were at worl
| in each car. The order of the train was al
| follows: First car, smoker, No. 313; sec
| ond car, sleeper, No. 219; third car, sleep
| en-, No. 21S; fourth car, sleeper, No. 217
fifth car, ladies' car or dining room car
sixth car, smoker; the seventh was day
coach.
INVESTIGATION BEGINS.
General Manager Platt and Superintend
ont Mccoy made preliminary investiga
ton this morning, which led them to the
belief that Fowler disregarded the sigma
at Seventy-second street. Fowler declares
| as stated above, most positively that Their
was no such signal displayed, while thu
1 oho Of cirr 81 ;,,.s o&
that the signal was displayed warning hin
that the preceding train had not yet lef
the section at that point, which extend
to Eighty-sixth street.
Superintendent Mccoy explained tina
there are in use throughout the entir,
length of the tunnel interlocking switches
with electrical appliances. By this sys
tenn the danger signal at Seventy-secont
street could not possibly be changed, ever
if the man in charge of the tower Their
sought to altar it until the preceding
train had left the station ahead. So
would appear, Mr.. Mccoy concludes, tina
the accident is attributable to the gros
negligence of Fowler AS to the posi-
bility that the fog in the tunnel this morn
| ing prevented the engineer from seeing tn
danger signal Mr.. Mccoy says that the rec
lights can be seen in the most fogg,
weather. But, he added, if he failed t
| notice the red light he would be appriset
of the fact that it was displayed by tn,
ringing of heavy gong which would b.
| sounded the instant the wheels passed
over the interlocking switch.
| EVERY BONE BROKEN.
Another body was that of a young ma,
about twenty-four years old. DR.. Seward
said that every bone in the body had beer
broken. 1t was slightly burned only abou
the legs.
The last body was that of boy abou
fourteen or fifteen years old. The heat
and face were crushed and mangled, ant
the body was bruised and burned
ENGINEER FowLER-CoNDUCToR HUTcHING
After the excitement was somewhat owe
Engineee Fowler was sent to the Presby
terrain hospital. His back was sprained
From enquery at his house last evening i
was learned that he had not been able t.
| return to his home here. He lives on Green
| wich avenue. Charles Wellington, tn
fireman, was slightly bruised but not Sc
riously hurt He also lives in New Haven
George Hutchings, the conductor, was no
injured, and he said that no one on hi
train was seriously hurt. He formerl,
lived in New Haven. His father is an oil
New Haven resident who formerly kept
store in the southwestern part of the city
THE PASSENGERS.
There were a number of passengers OF
the train and many of them were yer,
badly frightened. Some made their wa.
to the street through the Eighty-sixtl
street station, but the maj ority of then
we're transferred through the manholes t.
the side tunnels, where they were put o.
board a train that was sent up from tn
Grand Central station.
| OFFICIALS VISIT THE sCENE-wAGNEk CA
BURNED.
G. H. Plat, general manager of tn
Harlem line, and D. B. Mccoy, superin
tendent of the New York Central road
visited the scene of the accident, and
large force of men were put at work re
moving the debris. A wrecking train wa
also sent for and the work of conveying
the wrecked cars to Spuyten Duyvil wa
begun. The last vestige of the wreck wa
carried away from the scene of the disas
ter yesterday afternoon, but trains wer
not running regularly to New Haven unit
last night. Of the Wagner dining-ca
nothing remained to be taken away say
the trucks and some other work. Til
flames consumed all the infammable ma
terial.
| GENERAL MANAGER FUTILE INTERVIEWED
Regarding the catastrophe, General Man