Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1893-10-14
FACTS AND cOlNCIoENCES.
Remarkable Features of the Tragedy
-Superintendent's Statement.

Remarkable Features of the Tragedy
superintendent Statement.
Twenty minutes for breakfast, but only
a moment in which to die. was the hor-
ribly significant statement of Lloyd Wood
bury He stated to the United Press that
he stood OF the step Of one of the wrecked
coaches smoking a cigar with compan-
ion. He looked back and saw the second
section approaching. He supposed, Of
course, that i would turn of on one ofthe
switches, but it neared his section he
realized The terrible situation. Not less
impressive are the facts relating to the dis
Asttr showing as they do how terribly true
1t is that accidents will happen" in spite
Of human ingenuity and precautions, be-
cause, after all. 1t is only "human."
The following statement is made to the
United Press by General Superintendent
Robert MilleI. alt is utterly impossible
for me to understand how it happened
The more news get the more mystifed
am. Fow, for instance, here is the state
ment OF the superintendent to the effect
that the engineer tried his brakes at Jack
sen junction. That is in accordance with
rule - Of our regulations governing the
running of trains. Jackson Junction is
only mile from the station, and he there
fore must have found his brakes all right
only a few minutes before the accident
According to this same report, and II is
supported to some extent, be found out
that his brakes would not hold when within
quarter OF a mile of the train he hesmashed.
He at once reversed his engine and noti-
fed the conductor by whistle that his air
was not working. The conductor then
tried the air on the train. and neither WAS
any good | presume the conductor then
made an effort to use the hand brakes,
but possibly before anything could be
done the crash came. Now here is the
odd thing Ii the air was all right at the
Junction cannot understand what could
have happened TO the pumps. 1t IS sorle-
thing unheard Of for the pumps 10 give
out in this manner; but supposing the air
By some manner could have been cut of
between the train and engine, then the con-
ductor's brakes would have worked
automatically; but according to the re-
ports the conductor was as helpless as the
engineer.
I'm the midst of the greatest passenger
traffic in the history of the Michigan Cen
tral the accident comes. That possibly
makes natural your question as to whether
or not the men have been overworked.
| They have not been. We will not permit
that. II man says that he is too tired tc
work we will not permit him to go out
We have no need OF overworking our men
While the passenger business has beer
very heavy, the freight traffic has beer
| light and we have had plenty OF men
| They have been busy. but not worked
| down. The train dispatcher was not run
ming the sections of the train too close 70,
safety''
The heavy passenger traffic incident e
| the Worlds fair caused the railway off
| cials TO take extra precautions. Recently
al order WAS sent out forbidding am
train from leaving a station until tn,
train IRE ,eding it had been reported from
the next station ahead. This terribi,
wreck the second one Of consequence t
occur on the Michigan Central for peri
cd OF fourteen years. the anniversary o
that awful affair occurring Tuesday last
1t is a singular circumstance that thes
| horrible wrecks occurred IN the yards IL
jackson in the same month and on tn
same day OF the week, Friday. On Oct
| TO- 1873, the westbound Pacific expires
crashed into q switch engine. KILN,
eighteen people and injuring thirty-fv
| nth