The record-union., 1893-01-23
sneclal to the RrcoRp-uNrox.

Special to the REcoRD-UNIoN.
ST. LOUIS, Jan. pa wreck, which in
its consequences was one of the most
appalling and disastrous in years, oc-
Cured between Wann and Alton juno
ton, ILL.,, yesterday morning. The Cleve-
land, Columbus, Cincinnati and st. Louis
Southwestern limited passenger, consist
ing of an engine and four coaches, which
left here this morning for the East, ran
into a switch half mile north of Wann
and crashed into a train consisting of
seven tank cars standing thereon. The
result was a fire, and afterward an eX-
plosion, which has already cost seventeen
persons their lives, fatally injured four
teen more, seriously hurt fifty others and
caused great property loss to the COM
pany.
The Southwestern limited is due at
Wann at S:45 A. NJ. There are no side
tracks there, but about half a mile be-
yond, at Alton junction, there are several
switches. The tender of these switches
is P. Grattan by name, and upon him is
laid the blame by railway officials and
trainmen for the tragedy, and the officers
are now searching for him, as he fed
during the excitement following the dual
accident.
The passenger train reached Wann
twelve minutes late, and at Alton juno
ton was running at the rate of forty
miles an hour, the engineer being desir-
GUS of making up the lost time. The
switch was so turned as to send the fly
ing train on to one of the sidetracks. On
the track were seven tank cars filled
with refined lubricating oil. The engin-
eer called to the fireman, Dick White,
to jump for his life. He then reversed
the engine and applied the airbrake, but
he was too late, and the engine crashed
entirely through two of the tank cars,
splitting them in half, and then forced
entirely over the others.
The oil from the wrecked tanks at once
caught fire and sea of flames instantly
surrounded the engineer, who had
jumped just as the pilot of the engine
struck the first tank. The brave man
struggled to the embankment at one side
OF the track, but as soon as he reached it
he sank to the earth crisp and black
ened corpse. The fireman escaped with
slight bruises.
The engineers action in reversing the
engine and applying the brakes slack
ened the speed of the train sufficiently to
prevent any serious injury to the passen-
gers, of which there were about sixty. In
the baggage car the mails, eleven pieces
of baggage and one man was all burned
in few moments. The flames spread to
the other coaches and all were soon in
ruins. Three oil tanks, together with
the engine and tender, were also con-
sumed.
The passengers and villagers crowded
around the burning wreck anxious to as
sit if possible any unfortunates who
might be in need of help.
At this time the elimination of the
awful affair occurred. Two tank cars left
uninjured by the engine. simultaneously
and with fearful force exploded, throw
ing pieces of their iron sides out into the
adjacent fields and showering upon the
assembled crowd of sightseers a mass OF
flaming liquid. For second after the
noise of the explosion there was no sound
save the swish of the seething oil as it was
forced through the air. Then there arose
confusion OF agonizing appeals for help
and cries of terror to which no tongue or
pen could do justice. For several min
utes there was a panic indescribable.
Those touched by the blazing oil groped
about wildly, seeking in vain relief from
their torture. Almost without exception
the injured were burned about the face
and had their eyesight temporarily if not
permanently DESTROYED
Those who were uninjured were SC
terror-stricken as to be unable to assist
their less fortunate companions for some
time. At last hastily improvised litters
were formed and williag hands tenderly
carried the dead and Injured to Wann,
where they were plaeed in the depot un-
til relief train could be brought to the
scene.
Word was dispatched to Alton by
courier, the heat having melted the tele-
graph wires, to have a train made up and
send for the wounded. When the train
bearing the dead and wounded reached
Alton great crowds gathered and heart
rending scenes were witnessed when
sobbing women recognized among the
dead some relation or friend
The scenes in the hospital rooms where
the wounded were removed, were most
pathetic. The dirty, oil-soaked rags were
cut away from their bodies, and the knife
laid bare the horrible work of the burn
ing oil. Their hands and faces were all
scorched and bleeding, their lips swollen
and distorted, and their eyes either
burned out or tiame-eaten and incrusted
with blood and dust. The hands oil
many were burned to a crisp, their fingers
missing and their arms broken. Several
victims. when uncovered, were found tc
be without cuticle, the flames having
cooked and burned it until it clung tc
their clothing in removal, or fell away o.
Its own accord.
Up to 6 O'Clock this evening the death
list footed up seventeen persons, with
fourteen more at the hospital, who the
physicians say cannot recover.
The dead are: Webb Ross of Nation,
Ill, engineer of the limited; Hiram Cor
nelius of Iowa, Edward Miller of Alton
junction, and two unidentified men and
one boy, whose name is unknown. All
OF these were burned to death.
The additional dead are as follows
William Shattuck, Upper Alton; Henry
Penning, Wann; Daniel Harers, Alton
junction; William Mantz, Fosterburg,
IL; Charles Utt, Willie Mccarthy, w.
u. \. Miller, John Lucke, Charles FAR
1is. EDWARD Mauhin, John WILKINSON,