River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1893-08-31
MANY MEET DEATH.
Excursion Trains on the Long Island and
on the Hudson Roads ColIide-A Total
of Nineteen Lives Lost-Many injured.

Excursion Trains on the Long Island and
on the Hudson Roads ColIide-A Total
of Nineteen Lives Lost-Many Injured.
LoyG ISLAND CITY, L. l., Aug. 29.-
An accident that cost the lives of four
teen persons occurred shortly after
midnight Friday in the little village of
Berlin, near Calvary cemetery, in the
town of Newtown. The Long Island
railroad train that left Manhat-
tan Beach a. Ills o'clock col
lided with the train that left Rock
away Beach fifteen minutes earlier.
The two rear cars of the Ave that made
up the Manhattan Beach train were
demolished and the middle car was
overturned. Hardly one of the scores
of passengers aboard these three cars
escaped unhurt.
The list of those dead is as follows:
| Col Elisha a. Buck, Mrs Maggie Dieizel
Oscar Dietzel Mortimer Dittman John C.
/ Dyckhon ~ $. John Dycxhon Thomas Finn
Alexander Srillet, James J. Hylands, Richard
Newman. Max Stein Joseph NJ Thelan, Mrs
Bertha Weinstein. Sidney Weinstein.
! The list of injured numbers eighteen.
After the accident happened it was
over an hour before news of it reached
any outside point. 1t came by messen-
ger who walked into Long Island City.
The railroad company immediate
Y dispatched a relief train with
all the physicians in the citv. They
found an appalling state of affairs.
The Manhattan Beach train had been
standing in the block 20 allow another
train ahead to get at a safe distance.
The Rockaway Beach train came dash
ing along behind, ran into the
same block and crashed into the
rear end of the Manhattan
Leach train. Both were crowded
with excursionists. There were five
cars in the Manhattan Beach train. all
of them open cars. The Rockaway
train plunged in and plowed its way
completely through the two rear cars
and partly wrecked the third. Passen-
gers in the three cars were MANNED and
mangled horribly, and their shrieks of
terror and pain were awful.
The Rockaway engine was wrecked.
It's smokestack was carried away and
its huge boiler resembled pincushion
from the timbers of the wrecked cars
sticking into it. Upon these tim
bers were human beings impaled,
some dead and others gasping
their last. High upon the top lay the
dead body of a man, yet unidentified.
Upon one of the timbers was
impaled the body of Mrs. Oscar DietzeL
Upon another was the body of Sidney
Weinstein. The scene was indeseriba-
bic. The dead and wounded were
massed among the wreckage, beside,
upon and beyond the tracks Every
thing was spattered with blood of the
dead and wounded, and the cries of the
latter rose above the kissing of steam
and the calls of the frantic trainmen.
AS fast as the wounded could be
taken from the wreck they were ear
ried to the relief train and cared for
The doctors on board worked swiftly
but well, while other medical men
were out in the wreck applying restora-
tives and making hurried dressings of
wounds to sustain the sufferers until
they could be put on the relief train for
more careful treatment
The Manhattan Beach train was lust
pulling out of the block when the crash
came. When Engineer Donaldson felt
the shock he threw open his lever and
made all speed for Long Island City.
leaving the three wrecked cars behind.
None of the passengers or crew on the
Rockaway Beach train was seriously
hurt All were shaken up severely and
some badly bruised, but all were able
TO go to their homes without assistance.
The killing of Col. L. A. Buck. editor
of the Spirit of the Times, was es-
peciaLly pathetic. He was returning
from the beach with his son and DIR.
Knapp, of New York. The son was
thrown, all torn and bleeding, out on
the embankment Col Buck was so
badly hurt that he died almost instant
ly, while DIR. Knapp was uninjured and
did good service in relieving the suffer
ers. Young Mr.. Buck lies at ST. Johns
hospital terribly hurt and does not yet
know of his fathers death.
General Manager f. f. Reynolds and
superintendent w. II. Blood said that
the cause of the accident was still un-
known; that it was question of veraci-
ty between the tower switchman. Mutt.
and Engineer Conkrite, of the Rocka-
way train. The latter had reported that
heavy fog prevailed at the time, which
was true. He declared that the signals
were set at safety, indicating a clear
road, and he went ahead without re-
ducing speed. Suddenly Fireman Rob
ert Price, his companion. exclaimed:
MY God, there is a train aheadr'
Looking ahead he saw through the
mist the two red lights that always
hang at the rear end Of train. and de-
clares he Immediately reversed his en-
CINE and put on the steam-b brakes. Then
he and Fireman Price jumped for their
lives When the wrecked engine was
examined Sunday morning his state
ment as to the reversed lever and
steam brakes was found to be true.
The only remaining question was as To
whether he or Mutt was right about the
danger signal. Sunday morning it was
set at danger, and Mutt insists that it |
had remained so ever since he set it to
warn Engineer Conkrite. rigid in
vestigation will be held
NEW YORK, Aug. ga head and
head collision occurred Saturday after
noon at o'clock between passenger |
trains No. Is and No. 20 between Ice |
Pond and Dykemans on the Harlem |
road. Five men were killed and four |
SCI iously hurt.
Shot Ly EIfrhwavmeu