The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1891-06-16
OVER ONE HUNDRED MET DEATH
Whsn the Train Crashed into the
Swollen Stream Near Bale.
Whole Families Helped to Lengthen
the List OF Dead.
Scenes Like Those Of War Around
the Place Of Disaster.

BERNE, June 15.-Further details received
from the scene of the terrible railroad acct
dent which occurred yesterday at a village
near Bale, on the Moenchenstein & Bale
railroad, show that two engines and three
carriages. loaded with excnrsionists, fell into
the stream which flowed beneath the iron
bridge which gave way and caused the disas-
ter. These carriages and engines formed
shapeless heap Of wreckage beneath the
bridge structure, and by Its own size pre-
vented two other carriages, which were sus-
pended practically In the air, from falling
and still further increasing the number Of
killed and wounded. OF the large number
of persons injured. many have suffered so
seriously that it is considered likely that
their injuries will terminate fatally, as they
consist Of bad lacerations, and In some cases
limbs have been completely severed. The
bridge, or viaduct, which collapsed and
caused the accident. had only recently been
built, and had just been strengthened after
sustaining damage by the rising of the river.
The total number of people who lost their
lives is now placed at 100, with hundreds
more or less injured. Another account of
the disaster says that 81 bodies have already
been recovered, and that 40 persons are Sc
verely wounded. 1t Is feared that many
found.
The victims are mostly leading citizens of
Bale and its neighborhood. Engineers who
have inspected the bridge since its collapse,
say that the iron work Of the structure
alone gave way, and that the masonry work
Is intact.
Scenes which were truly heartrendlng
were witnessed in this city today, when the
bodies of large number Of victims were
brought here from the place where the acci-
hnnf rod hxT rSs.er Int tfxrao vl.n
had gone in search Of missing husbands. fa-
theirs or brothers, wives. mothers or sisters,
as the case might be, for representatives of
the majority OF the best families Of Bale left
here to attend the music festival. Several
ence by the disaster, the full extent Of
which Is not known, even at this hour. Bale
Is now truly city Of mourning, place of
the dead, and the scene of bitter desoation
and mourning. The neighborhood OF the
sembles In many features the after episodes
some warlike struggle. Still more SO
was this the case during the whole
Of the past night. when the river
by huge fires built up Of fir trees. The troops
and firemen worked increasingly, dragging
the river for the dead, nursing the wounded
and keeping Gordon around the spots
where IL was thought advisable to admit the
CROWDS Oh people VINO nau 10cked ABOUT the
broken bridge from every village In the can
ton. The work Of the soldiers dragging the
river was greatly impeded by the fact that
the stream was considerably swollen by the
recent melting of the SHOWS. Thus the wat
ers carried many of the bodies a long way
down the river, so much so that 1t is expec.-
ed that several days Of such dredging work
will be required before the soldiers work
will be completed. That somebody" Is to
blame for the accident nobody for a moment
doubts, but people are so busy just now In
caring for the wounded and for the dead and
in trying to arrive at some accurate esti-
mate of the total amount of the disatser that
the question of blame is postponed for the
present from official consideration.