The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-12-09
SAVED BY A CHANCE.
Narrow Escape Of a Train From
Wreck in Oregon.
TWO HUNDRED LIVES IN PERIL.
n Girl Discovers the Attempt 70 Wreck
It and Her Escort Gives Warning
DIR. Calhoun's story.

Hon. G. V. Calhoun, one of the presidential
electors for this state and president OF the
State Board of Trade, who returned from Cali
fornia yesterday, IL one Of 200 persons who had
q narrow escape from death through an attempt
70 wreck a Southern Pacific passenger train in
Cow Creek canyon, in Southern Oregon, on
Wednesday night. Dr. Calhoun was returning
from . visit to his two sons at the Leland STAN
ford university.
When the train approached the high trestie
over Cow Creek canyon IL was stopped by q
young man and two women, who tagged II and
said that . rail on the trestle had been torn up.
The train was delayed about three-quarte-s Of
an hour while the damage was being repaired,
but only Dr.. Calhoun and another passenger
were told of II, as the others were just going to
bed and the train crew did not wish to disturb
their dreams with visions Of q plunge into the
canyon.
twas only by . fortunate accident that the
train was saved. Two young women who were
returning from a visit across the canyon called
ayoung man at a house near by to pilot them
across the ;restle with a lantern. that being a
short cut They were hurrying across to avoid
the train, which was due in a few minutes,
when one OF the young women discovered that
one of the wooden guards had been broken of
and q rail torn up and thrown into the canyon.
She called the young mans attention to 1t and
he fastened across and stopped the train a short
distance bsfore it reached the trestle.
Though the party had met the trackwalker on
his way to inspect the track at that point, it is
doubtful II he would have reached the place in
time, and in that case the train with the 300
men. women and children would have plunged
TO almost certain destruction in the abyss below.
~ the trestle is an unusually high one. Since
the last wreck in the Same locality the force of
track walkers has been doubled and there is now
one for every two miles OF track. The would-be
wreckers must have watched the man at this
point very closely, as he had inspected the track
on the rrestle only a short time before the youny
people discovered the crime and he was on the
way back az that time.
The following dispatch gives another version
OF the discovery that the rail was missing, but,
rs Dr. Calhoun received his information from
the train crew, it ia probably correct:
ASHLAND. Or, Dec. s-The train crew arriving
on this mornings overland from the north, re-
port a dastardiy attempt by ZONE unknown cuI-
prits TO wreck the Southern Pacific northbouud
ex press beyond Grants Pass last night. Rails
were removed from the track on the trestle just
north OF tunnel 2, in such a place that il the
train had tempte to pass, il would have been
hurled of the track and down into the canyon,
and the result would have been a dreadful
wholesale murder. Luckily the bridge carpen-
tiers dis covered the displacement of the rail in
time. tagged the train and had the track re-
paired in time to allow it to proceed with little
lOSs OF time.