The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-11-17

being the body, apparently, OF shop girl
going home from work. BY her side in the
dead wagon lay the body of a woman about
fifty years of age, and near her was anoth-
er of a woman about forty years old.
Scores of persons living on the South Side
who had relatives or friends working oP
visiting on the East Side nocked 10 the
morgues TO make anxious inquiries about
their missing friends. At IL o'clock
dredge was secured TO raise the wrecked
car. II that is done, the remainder of the
bodies viii soon be recovered. for it is prob
able that few. If any, OF the bodies have
fioated away. the river being practically
without current at that point.
The man who was taken to the hospital in
an unconscious condition is Patrick Loo
ney, of Lyman street. He recovered con-
sciousness shortly before midnight. but is
in a critical condition. Looney has q bad
wound on the head. He said that his recol-
lection OF the accident was not very clear.
The first intimation he had that an acci-
dent was to occur was when he felt the
car falling Before he knew what had hap
pened he became unconscious and remem-
bered nothing more until he came to at
the hospital. Looney's impression was that
the car was full of people. though he could
not remember whether it was a single car
or double train.
FIRST TO GIVE THE ALARM
Battalion Chief Rebbeck. OF the fire de-
partment, was crossing the bridge at the
time of the accident He was on the op-
posite side OF the draw from the one over
which the car plunged. He does not know
saw the car he thought it was standing
on the opposite side of the draw. All of
sudden it plunged over into the river
| Chief Rebbeck was the first to give the
alarm by telephoning to the police and fire
| departments.
The captain of the bridge guard says: 81
saw the car coming rapidly toward the
draw just as had given the signal 10
| swing it to admit of the passage OF a ves-
sci. waved my hands and hallooed 10 the
motorman to stop. but apparently he paid
before it went over the brink the motor
man jumped and ran away" This state
ment does not agree with those of eyewit-
nesses. who declare that the conductor went
ahead to open the switch. which is about
two hundred feet from the draw. and mo-
toned for the car TO come ahead. Certain
it is that the conductor mounted the car
again and went down with the passengers
to death, and it will never be possible to
tell exactly what he did before the acci-
dent occurred.
Stanley. superintendent of the Cleveland
electric railway, say they have investi-
gated the accident so far as 1t is possible to
do so tonight and they are at loss to un-
said that the motorman, whose name is
Rogers, had been in the employ of the COM
pany four years. and was regarded as a
thoroughly competent and reliable man. The
conductor. whose name is Hoffman, and
who is in the wreck, had been on the road
two years, having been employed for two
years before that in the car shops of the
company. He also had the full confidence
of the company. Mr.. Andrews said.
Thousands Of people remained at the scene
Of the accident until long after midnight
and hundreds Of anxious searchers have
moved in procession from one morgue to an
other, looking for friends or relatives who
are supposed to be missing. The scenes
about the morgues when the dead were
identified were touching In the extreme. One
tof the unidentified bodies is that of boy
about nineteen. In the pocket was hand
kerchief with the name OF Curt Lepehne.
Newspaper clippings in the pocket indicated
with his mother from Europe, and that he
had stayed at the Queens Hotel, in Hail.
fax.
woman named Sadie Logan, aged twen-
ty-nlne, is missing. Sne started Tor her
home, on Muirson street, at Z O'Clock, to go
to the South Side, and at midnight she had
not returned. 1t is believed she was in the
wrecked car.
Rogers, the motorman OF the car, was ar
rested late tonight at his home, No. 1897
Cedar avenue, and was held In 500 ball
to await the result OF the coroner's inquest
When taken into custody he said: "The
conductor went ahead and turned the
switch. giving me the signal TO come ahead.
I supposed that everything was all right,
and did not notice that the draw was open.
I suppose 1 was deceived by the fact that
the electric lights in the car did not go out
when We passed the cutoff in the current.
When / discovered that the gates TO the
draw were closed I jumped from my car,
falling on the edge of the bridge and bare
| ly escaped rolling over. When I saw what
had happened and realized the extent of
the accident 1 ran back across the bridge
until I found a policeman and told him
| to get help. Then 1 went down below the
bridge where they were at work on the
| wreck, and afterwards went home" Rog-
ere was closely questioned by the detec-
tives and chief of police. but he insisted
! that the conductor had given him the
| proper signal to go ahead.
OJod In Nm Nro.L