The record-union., 1893-05-08
Special to the REcoRD-UNIoN.

! LAFAYETTE Ind.), May 7.-One of the
most horrible wrecks in the history of
rallroading occurred on the Big Four
Road in this city at Ills this morning, as
the result of which ten men are now dead
and many more are injured. The train
was the east-bound passenger leaving
chicago at 9 P. NJ. The accident was
caused by the failure of the air brakes to
work. The engineers desperate efforts to
stop the train were shown by the largo
amount OF sand thrown by him on the
bridge through which the train came Just
| before the fatal crash, and the vigorous
whistling for brakes.
The engine dashed out of the bridge
| over the Wabash River at a speed of not
less than sixty miles an hour, crashing
into the depot building, tearing off a por-
ton, and carrying the train sheds several
hundred feet. The engine when it left the
track was followed by the baggage car,
TWO postal cars and the express car, and
piled in one promiscuous mass, q total
and complete wreck, burying a score or
more Of victims in the awful pile OF de-
bris. The chair car and two Pullman
sleepers remained on the track.
To add to the CONSERVATION, fire broke
out from stove in the baggage car, but
the fire department quickly extinguished
the flames.
A large crowd gathered quickly at the
scene of the disaster, and assisted in res
cuing the victims, and large force OF
local physicians gave necessary attention
TO the injured. Several victims of the
wreck were persons standing in the depot
waiting Tor the train.
| The dead are as follows: Michael Welch.
engineer, indianapolis; fireman McInnis
OF Indianapolis; L. d. Myers, Logans-
port; mail clerk McMahon. Cincinnati:
mail clerk Charles Myers, Lafayette; a
hackman, name unknown; John Lannon,
Lafayette, mail cart driver; Jesse H.
! Long, Lebananon, Ind, mail clerk;
| Charles S. Cahill, Indianapolis; Otto Jer-
selson, Chicago
These were all frightfully bruised and
mangled, their limbs being severed in
several instances.
The injured are as follows: jefferson
Reese, Kemptons Richard ones, Pontiac,
H.; Louis Lefller, Fowler; Sophias Ber-
genhale, Milwaukee; William Place,
Frankfort, Ind; Charles Roush. Lafay-
cite; William Bechtell, Lebanon, Ind; c.
A. Wissell, y. W. Cornahan, L. \. Vert
sol, J. N. Vickery, all mail clerks, Gin
cinnati.
| The ill-fated train almost a mile from
the station began dashing around the
curves and tore across the long bridge,
although the man at the throttle reversed
the machinery, and immense streams of
fire were being dashed off from the driv-
ing wheels running in an opposite direc-
ton to that of the swiftly flying cars that
followed. just after leaving the east end
of the long bridge the tracks describe
semi-circle at the midway point, at which
the union station is located. When the
engine struck the sharp curve, it left the
track, followed by the cars in an awful
swirl, and they piled upon each other
100 feet away, after crashing through the
train sheds and bringing down tons of
structural iron to add TO the terrors of the
situation.
Bystanders went to work at once, and
the police and fire department quickly
responded. Superintendent Bender ar
rived at an early hour, and under direc-
ton of train-wreckers the tracks were
soon cleared and ready for the resump-
| ton of traffic.
The injured were removed to their
homes or the hospital, and no other fatal
tiles are expected than those heretofore
noted.