Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-07-06
KILLED FOURTEEN.
The Railway Once More Pro-
vides CHASTITY Item.
FEARFUL PLUNGE OF TWO COACHES

A Fall of Thirty-Fiye Feet Through a
TrestIe Weakened by Fire-Fifty- Eight
Persons Wounded, Eleven Very Severe
ly-A Freight Train smashes a Street
Car at Chicago and Kills One Man-Two
Fatal Accidents to lEronauts-stepped
ON by an Elephant-varied Fatalities.
CHARLESTON, W. Va, July 6-The great
est disaster in the history of this commu-
nifty was the wrecking of Kanawha and
Michigan train at Farm, a village eight
miles north of this city Saturday morn
ing. There is trestle there thirty-five
feet high, which caught fire at some time
during the night from an Cnaccountable
cause, probable from cinder from an
engine passing about midnight. While
the bridge was not consumed its founda-
lions were so badly damaged as to render
1t unsafe to cross. No notification of the
fact was received here, however, and the
train, the first of the day, attempted to
cross it as usual. The engine, tender and
baggage car passed over safely, but the
two coaches went through.
Nearly Every Passenger Dead or Injured.
Engineer Pat Conner seemed to realize
the situation and pulled open the throttle
in the hope of pulling all over safely, but
it was too late. Both coaches were
crowded and scarcely any one in them es-
capped either death or injury. The station
is three miles from the nearest telegraph
office, but as soon as possible relief train
was sent from this city, which returned
about 2:15 p. IN. bearing the dead aid
wounded One of the most pathetic in
cidents of the accident was that of the
case of the Welcher family. Mr.. Welcher,
his wife and lit child were on their way
to Point Pleasant to visa friends, being
their first trip outside of the city for
years. Mr.. Welcher was instantly killed,
and his wife was brought here few hours
later so badly injured that she died
shortly after her arrival Their little
child, aged about two years, was sor- O.
what bruised and had three fingers of its
right hand cut off.
The List of Unfortunates.
Ten were killed outright and four have
since died of their injuries. The follow
ing is q list of dead: Amos Cotton, E.x
City; Orville Robinson, Midway; Thomas
Thornton, Charleston; Walter Welcher
and wife, Charleston; Jasper Dougherty,
New Martinsville, o.; Colonel W f. Fife,
Putnam county, w Va; Misses Mary
Sullivan and Ella O'Learv, Charleston;
Theodore y. Wilson, of GaIlipolis Bal
letin; l.. g. Rose and Charles Hoffman,
Blue Greek, kanawha county; Mrs. II. )
Tryslow, owner of the st. Albert hotel,
Charleston; an unknown woman.
These Most Seriously Injured.
There were ffty-eight wounded. Those
who were most seriously hurt are: f. j.
Scatterthwaite, of this city, recovery
doubtful Jennie Jackson and q. W. Stab
bling, OF Charleston, badly hurt; William
Ford, of Elk City, fatally; James Black
wood, Athens, o., fatally; c. G.. Long,
Point Pleasant, badly; w. b. Reed,
Athens, O., badly, Mrs. Sallie Coulter and
child-Mrs. Coulter badly and the child
slightly; Samuel Stone, badly; Mrs Mary
Wall, Elk City, badly; Andrew Archibald.
Raymond City, badly; Leon E. Bleigh,
Poca, badly. The cars were crowded, and
it is wonder that there were not more
fatalities