Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-27
PERILS OF THE RAIL.
Fatal Disasters I'm America and Europe
Excursion Trains Wrecked.

| Excursion Trains Wrecked.
An excursion train on the c., H. and d. rail.
road was wrecked at Middletown. Ohio, Satur
day night and three persons were killed and
many injured more or less severely. The train
Of fifteen crowded cars started on its retur 4
| trip from Woodsdale about o'clock and about
an hour later the accident occurred at Middle
town. drawtsr about the middle OF the train
broke and they stopped at Middetown to patch
it up for the run to Dayton. Brakemen were
Immediately sent out with red flags to flag the
approaching train, and nearly half an hour wa.
consumed in repairing the disabled car. Red
lights were not promptly changed to the rear
OF this car, though the train was pulling out
when the accident occurred at nearly 3 o clock
| Two hundred and fifty men, women and chill
dren we're In the last three coaches and all
knew that freight No. A was following, and
| they Appreciated and talked Of their danger.
Some Of them called Conductor Peter G.
Giancys attention to their peril ard he eau
toned them that II they heard train Al coming
| they should jump from the car. Five minutes
| later the awful disaster was upon them. The
excursion was slowly creeping of the side track
when an ominous roaring WI, heard from train
IL then not over quarter of II mile away.
Nearer and nearer came the monster mogul
with thlrty-ffye loaded cars. and when in sight
OF Mlddletown station Engineer Schwnd saw
the fagman waving the danger signal and be
immediately called for brakes. shut of steam
and applied the sand. He saw that a collision
was inevitable. Then he and his fireman
jumped, and an instant later the crash came
rear-cnd collision of mighty force. Tho excur-
sion was pulling out on to the main track. and
all but the two hind coaches had left the siding
when the mogul engine, with the heavy train
behind 1t, went blowing through. The two
rear cars full of human freight were hurled
into the ditch, and the next coach was struck
fairly in the end and the locomotive pushed
under. elevated it to an angle Of fortytive de-
grees, and there it stood, filled with shrieking
people.
This car caught fire, but Engineer Schwind
and his fireman were able to extinguish the
blaze by use of hose from the locomotive. Two
cars lay crushed in the ditch, with mass Of
manned and mangled people moaning in agony,
pleading for help. Eescucrs set to work at
once to extricatc them. Legs, arms and heads
could be seen through broken windows or
pinned under the wreck. Means of the help
less sufferers and means Of the dying mingled
with the frantic cries of mothers seeking hus
bands and children. Many had been cut By
glass and timbers in the rush to escape and
bloody faces and hands bore CHASTITY testimony
TO the great number who were injured.
Physicians and citizens OF Miudletown were
soon at the scene TO join in rescu.ng the un-
fortunates. The terror stricken excursionsts
were made comfortable In the houses, the
three dead persons were properly cared for
and the injured received all necessary atten-
ton. All traffic on the railway was suspended,
and relief trains the only moving.
Passengers OF the ill-fated train began arriving
at Dayton at midnight. but it was not until
7:3O i'll the morning that the special train
reached there with the fifteen most seriously
injured people.
A tramp named James Wilson of Columbus,
Ohio. who, with his two little boys, was having
free eide on the freight train, says he is a
railroader by occupation, and was on the third
from the from when nnprOachInO Middle
town Saturday night; that he plainly saw the
red lights swinging and that the engineer tried
to stop the train, but could not and the heavy
cars crowded him into the excursion train.
From IL o clock Saturday night till yester-
day morning the union depot at Dayton was
thronGed with an anxious crowd OF people.
All were impatiently waiting for tdings of
relatives or friends OF. the wrecked excursion
train. The Cincinnati. Hamilton and Dayton
Railroad Company, on whose road the accident
occurred, controlled the only telegraph line to
the scene Of the wreck and it was impossible
to get anything like accurate information.
The suspense Of the people was painful to
witness. The first train to arrive, bearing a
portion of the excursionists. came in about 4
a. m, and two hours late another bearing the
dead and wounded. Then it was learned that
three people had been killed outright and
seventeen others injured, some of them seri-
ously. The wrecked train consisted of fourteen
coaches and one baggage, and was bearing
and their friends to Dayton from Woodsdale
Island Park near Hamilton, where they had
spent the day in enjoyment.
KILLED AND INJURED.
The following is an official list of killed and
injured:
killed-Frank L. Simonton aged seventeen
years; VIM. n. Matthews. aged fourteen; Min
ME Freer. aged twenty-six.
lnjured-Frank Patterson. nineteen left arm
amputated: Joseph 7. Cleal, thirty-one. left
arm amputated; Joseph l.. SnaveIy. Po,tstown,
internal injuries; Frank Rieger, compound
fracture OF left arm; VIM. Aman. left foot
badly lacerated; Annie Vernard confusion right
side and nip; Katie Schlcin. both feet badly
injured; Mary Graham. right foot lncerated
Eidon Beason, left side of body and leg
bruised; Ella Beason. left foo. badly confused:
Marcus limerick, lef, hip abraided and back
sprained Edith futile. right leg Bruised May
keber. slightly bruised: Gus. Grau. hand cut;
Efhc Wolf, lef. elbow bruised; Milo Fritz, cut
on right cheek. chin and forehead; Mary
Reefe, Osborn, Ohio, slightly injured.
DISASTER 10 ANOTHER EXCURSION TRAIN
A.terrible railway accident occurred yester-
day near the village of Saint Mande. in the de-
partment OF the Seine, France. Two excursion
trains collided. owing to some error on the
part of the engineer OF one of the trains. Both
were loaded with people out for holiday The
collision was followed by q scene of frichtful
confusion. Three carriages were utterly
wrecked and many persons were crushed and
injured Ill the ruins. About fifteen were killed
and sixty njured. Most of the bodies recov-
cred were without legs, through the seats being
jammed together and cutting off the limbs.
twenty thousand people assembled at the
scene. including many relatives of the injured
and dead. The scenes were most heartrending
as the victims were extricated. The engineer
and fireman of the second trair ware hurne1
alive. The station master, whose oversight
the blame is now placed, has, it is reported,
gone mad and disappeared.
COW WRECKS LOCOMOTIVE.
The suburban train on the Chattanooga.
Rome and Columbus railroad which left Chat
tanooga Saturday evening met with terrible
accident beyond Mission Ridge. The engine
was ahead OF the train, but running backward
when 1t struck u COW. which turned the engine
completely over on its side. The fireman,
Lewis Potts. is buried beneath the engine and
presumably dead. Engineer Thos Burchell
was injured about the head and shoulders
wrecklnG train left for the scene.
TWO OTHER COLLISIONS
rcar-end collision of big Four" freight
trains occurred near Gallon, Ohio, Yesterday
morning, wrecking number of cars and scat
tering goods all around. The engineer and
fireman jumped. The road was blockaded
head-end collision occurred on the Erie
railroad near Red Key. n. Y, Saturday night.
The extent of the damage is not known. but
il WAS bad wreck and all trains were lal,vaa