The Red Cloud chief., 1893-09-29
THOMPSON FORGOT.
A BRAkEMAN'S FEARFUL BlUNDER
COSTS ELEVEN LIVES.

A Passengcs Train Plunges Into = stand.
ing Freight and Only Ono Coach Escapes
Demoiition-The Man VINO Caused the
Havoc Disappears.
K%INGsBUEY, Ind. Sept. 23.-Eleven bodie,
resting upon improvised Stats and table.
nnder the roof Of the modest Masonic hall
Of this village, and q score Of injured re
ccived as inmates Of the city hospital Of
Peru, seventy miles distant, tell the
story Of the latest Of railroad horrors, Of
which this village has been the scene.
The revised list Of dead and injured 10 as
follows;
Dead. II. McKenna, butcher, Hyde
Park, Mass; Harry French, aged "a, Of
the London Charity school. London, Eng
land; Charles Birbee, san Francisco
Alice Reed, East Boston, Mass; Miss Mel
lie u. Tucker, Boston. Mass; Warren e..
Ryder, Phoenix, Arlz.; II. c. Zelle, Ger
many; J. d. Roundy, La Noble. H.; John
Green, engineer passenger train, Ashley,
Ia; j. G.. Coulter, conductor passenger
train, Detroit; W. n. Lyon, baggage mas
ter passenger train, Detroit.
Injured-Frank L. Dow, Fair Haven,
Wash, scalp wound; Miss NJ. A. Kelly,
Brookline, Mass, head cut and badly
bruised; Otto Huck, Hamburg, Germany,
bruised and ankles sprained; g. S. Hod.
son, Dover, N. H., chin gashed and injuries
to back; Mrs. 8. a.. Seavy, Somerworth. N.
H., back injured, general Commissions and
nervous prostration; Mrs. G.. w. Burbank,
New Orleans, right arm and both legs
INSTRUMENTATION critical; Mrs. II. w.
Ryder, Phoenix, Ariz., face and body cut,
right leg broken; Simon Garfield, Iron.
wood, Mich, Commissions Of limbs and
body: Mrs. Garfield, wife Of above, left
arm broken, Commissions on head; Mrs. d.
Dugan Auderned, Pennsylvania. slight
bruises; w. J. Askins, residence unknown,
left leg fractured, internal injur!es-un.
conscious; Edward Rush, London, Eng.
land, youth, surface COMMISSIONS; William
Evans, London, England, youth, both legs
broken; Albert Motion, youth, London,
England, right arm injured; Hattie
Hutchins. child, Phoenix. Ariz internal
injuries; Mrs. b. G. Hill, Somersworth, N.
H., left thigh broken; Apnie Hill, same
address, slightly bruised; Henry Volking,
fireman Of freight traip, scalds and con.
tusions; John Barber, fireman passenger
train, scalds and COMMISSIONS; Engineer
Whitman, Of freight train, right arm
broken, hurt in back.
One Moment of Forgetfulncss.
A moment Of forgetfulness or absent.
mindedness on the part Of a brakeman who
Is given the best Of reputation by the Wa.
bash officials tells the story Of the seconds
that preceded the catastrophe. As to the
facts themselves there IL no room for dis.
pute. Freight train No. 4, eastbound,
from Chicago. was due at this point ut An
q. M. II was under orders to take the sid
ing and await the arrival Of westbound ex,
press No. Is, which according to the sched'
ule should have passed the Kingsbury sta
tion at 4:40. The express, however, WA.
away behind time, and owing TO the heavy
travel growing out Of the Worlds fair II
was divided into two sections, the second
section running twelve minute behind
the first. Both sections were made up a,
Buffalo, tho passengers including people
from that city al we'll as from the variou,
lines centering In 1t from Canada and The
east.
What Was Brakeman Thompson Doing
With the knowledge that under tn,
schedule he had twenty minutes to spare
Engineer Whitman, Of the freight train
proceeded up the siding to the main line q
take water, the switch being thrown oper
by Herbert Thompson, head brakeman o.
the freight. After the engine had taker
water the freight was backed to the sid
ing. and Thompson closed the switch. he
garding this latter fact there Is no room
for question; for at Oslo the first section o
the express, thirty minutes late, swep'
past on the main track, giving the usua
! signal-long and two short blasts-to init
mate to the freight that q second section
was following close behind. What wer,
the movements Of Brakeman Thompson
In the next few moments remains Il
be developed.
For the Deadly Switch IL Open.
Certain II is that when twelve minute
later the second section Of the westboun'
express came laundering along at a spec,
OF forty miles an hour the switch was open
In the early dawn tho red lights ut tn
switch and the target were hardly discerna
bic, and IL is n question whether either tn
engineer or fireman Of the passenger locke
for them, secure in their knowledge tina
week IN and week out they had swept owe
the same ground without hindrance. Lk
a flash Of lightning, therefore, the trail
took the siding, and almost before til
engineer and fireman realized that the
had missed the main track they la
Crashed into tho waiting freight.
shrieks and Groans Fill tho Air.
A second later and the air WA lille
with shrieks, Rroans, means and piteou
appeals for help and assistance, The pa.
senger train consisted Of a baggage cal
three ordinary coaches and two sleeper.
and tho force Of the collision was sue
that only the rear sleeper escaped injury
The locomotive Of the freight was drive
half way into the car In its rear, and tn
baggage car OF the passenger train wa
thrown to one side, while the passenge
coaches partially telescoped each othol
and the Grand Trunk coach cut into tn
sleeping car kansas" carrying away tn
smoking compartment and sections Oh
and three as clean AZ though they ha
been trimmed with q razor edged AK
Tho forward coaches were completed
wrecked and the occupants buried in til
debris.
Thompson, the Brakeman, Gone.