Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1893-10-26

containing currency and quantity OF
silver money, were brought to light
and turned over to the officers
When second search Of the debris
was made and it was certain that no
bodies reamined the freight car was
backed down to the city depot, the
charred remains transferred to an un-
| dertaker's; wrecking crew set to
work, the debris again sorted and
afterwards burnt, and there is nothing
in the railroad yards but heap of
ashes to tell the story of one of tho
! most awful holocausts in the history
of the railroad.
Not until their dying day will some
of the citizens who were early on the
ground forget the scene that they were
compelled to witness and helpless to
relieve.
No pen can describe the last mo-
! ments of Mrs. Charles Van Dusen. She
had succeeded in getting herself out OF
| the window, but her limbs were PIN
Toned by the heavy framework of the
seat she had been occupying with her
husband. Thus held, roasting and
| burning from the feet up, she pleaded
side were powerless to give. Despite
her terrible agony she retained con-
sciousness to the last, and as the flames
crept up and surrounded her she called
out her name and that of friends to be
notified.
II am teacher in the Methodist
Sunday-school at Sprout Brook, N.
"" she cried. ''Say die like Chris
tian.''
Then the side of the car gave way
! and she fell back into the flames.
Her husband had meanwhile been
rescued from the next car into which
he had been driven by the force of the
collision. Both limbs were fractured
and he had also received internal in
juries. He retained consciousness un-
til his death, but was kept in igno-
rance of the fate of his wife. In his
last breath he asked Rev. George B.
Kulp to send his love to his two chill
dren that he had left at home and also
to give them his watch. He was Al
years old and deacon in the Metho-
dist church of his native village.
Many articles found in the debris
may lead to the Identification of some,
at least of the long list of unrecog-
nizable dead. These include hand
kerchief marked E. Wurtz; card of
A. Allen & Co., $50 Bay street, Toronto;
a card of Meriden Fire Insurance Co.,
Meriden, Conn. with pencil writing that
cannot be deciphered; a lady's watch
with name engraved Ann Richard
and case numbered II; envelopes
addressed to Gagon Roberts; letter
-
New York; letter from Sheldon & Hen
ry, of Woonsocket, N. Y. introducing
w. w. Henry to friends in Chicago
and in which was a round-trip ticket
from Boston to Chicago; bank book
1924, Manhattan bank. New York,
in the name of Harry j. Archbell; bum
die of personal articles with card of
Henry Opperman, passenger agent, 81
Broadway, New York; letter addressed
to Guion Roberts, 80 Nashua street,
New York; bundle with letter ad-
dressed to James G. Workman, 4S1
East Eightieth street, New York.
That VIM. Lewis Wilson, of Evans.
ton, ILL.,, is one of the victims is evil
dent from the contents of valise that
escaped the flames. A large number
of engraved cards, together with a
number of cards marked Mrs. L. b.
Hayes, enclosed in box. showing
that they had been printed by Geo.
MAR, of Evanston.
Other articles found included chain
of large gold beads, three watches and
a Bible, having on the title page the
following: Emblem for st. Clements
class, Anchor: Hebrews, 6:19. Teacher,
J. S. Arch, Easter, 1885," The name
is SO near the edge that it could not
have been Archibald, but q short
name like Archer.
A slip of paper in the Bible, but
probably not connected with it, as
shown by marks of burning upon it,
had the following: I'LL, October 3,
1s93.-Ths following orders from your
customers, Potten & Sons" Then fol.
lowed page of short lines, unreada-
BILE, and all were signed J. w. Goddard
& Son.
A Grewsome Task.
It was a grewsome task upon which
General Secretary Ben F. Bergman OF
the local Young Mems Christian asso-
citation was engaged for several hours
tonight. He had been requested by
Coroner Gillette to examine the score
and more of charred remains
with view of bringing to light
something that might lead to
the Identification of each. Upon
a sheet of canvas stretched upon
the floor at the far end of the
basement in Ranger & Farley's furni.
ture and undertaking establishment.
the blackened bodies and the trunks.
some minus legs and some arms and
head, were laid in a double row. A
Chinese curtain that shut off the rest
of the basement and couple of oil
lamps that sent funeral glare over
the extemporized morgue seemed to in
vest the surroundings with additional
horrors. AS one sheet after another
was drawn away and that which was
beneath exposed to view, more than one
grey-headed veteran who had seen
death in its worst form on the battle
field and elsewhere was forced to turn
away. There were but two of the
twenty-five bodies that were possible
of Identification even by the most init
mate friends Of the victims
Tears came inf0 the ewes of the by.