Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1895-03-02
MEXICAN RAILWAY WRECK.

the history of the Mexican railroads,
resulting in the killing of 104 persons
and the serious, if not fatal, injury OF
nearly a hundred others. 1t occurred
Thursday afternoon on the Interoceanic
Railroad at point about twenty five
miles from the City of Mexico. A few
days ago great number of persons left
the capital and the towns in the vicinity
to 60 on pilgrimage to the Catholic
shrine at Sacre Monte. Tickets for the
pilgrimage were sold at reduced rates
over the Interoceanic lines, and the
road carried the bulk of the pilgrims.
Thursday long train, aboard of which
there were 1000 passengers, was re-
turning from the place of pilgrimage.
ALI went we'll until point on the line
midway between Temamtla and Tenan-
go was reached. On this part of the
road there is steep incline, the line at
one pace on it having sharp curve,
where it runs close to the edge OF
high precipice. This is one OF the most
dangerous places on the road, and was
rendered more so by the fact that the
track there was not in the best of con-
dition.
AS the train began to run down the
incline many of the passengers were
laughing and joking, while others were
looking out of the windows at the
rapidly passing scenery, which at that
nnint Is Grand Soon the speed of the
train began to increase, and it was soon
running at frightful rate. The
passengers ceased their laugh
ing and Joking and looked at each other
with strange fear depicted in their
faces. Steadily the momentum of the
train, which was now swaying and
bounding fearfully, increased, and soon
the dangerous high curve was struck.
AS the pilot wheels of the engine took
the curve the locomotive swayed heav-
lily, and then either jumped the track
or turned rail and was das he'd across
the scanty space between the rails and
the edge of the chasm and then plunged
downward.
One after another. three coaches fill
ed with passengers dashed after it and
piled up in mass OF wreckage at the
foot of the precipice. The next two
coaches also jumped the track, but
most fortunately did not go over the
edge of the precipice. AS the fifth
coach left the metals it twisted and
broke the coupling connecting it with
the coaches behind. These coaches
kept the rails and passed safely around
the curve. After running consider
able distance they were stopped by the
hand brakes.
When the engine and the three
coaches fell to the bottom of the ravine
there was fearful crash, and mingled
with it were the shrieks ofthe affrighted
passengers which could be easily heard
above the shrieking of the escaping
steam of the engine, which was knock
ed to pieces by the fall.
The passengers in the two derailed
coaches at the edge of the precipice got
outas quickly as possible, and many Of
them fell on their knees and offered
thanks for their escape from a most
awful death. I'm the meantime, num-
had returned 10 the scene of the wreck
and devoted themselves to the rescue
of those imprisoned in the wreckage at
the foot Of the precipice. The sight
here was most gruesome one. The
carriages were shattered and MAORI
ty of the occupants were lying horribly
mangled beneath the wreckage. The
shrieks and means of the injured were
heartrending, while many of the un-
hurt women and children moaned and
walled in an agony ofterror. Here and
there among the debris could be seen
an upturned face, the eyes fixed in the
CLASSY stare of death, the features dis
lorted with unknown fear. Again,
what had been q face could be seen
crushed out of all semblance to human
ity. Here was an arm, there a leg that
had been severed from trunk lying,
perhaps, fifty feet away. The sight
was one that will meyer be forgotten by
those who witnessed it.
One hundred and four dead and
eighty FIVE wounded were taken out Of
the wreck. The injured who could
move were brought to the City Of Mex
leo.
Many of the dead will never be iden-
tilted, some of them being SO horribly
mangled that it is almost impossible to
recognize the remains as those of hu-
man beings. So far as can be learned
the accident wa due to the negligence
of the engineer. 1t is stated that when
the train entered the incline he made
no attempt to check its speed by the
use of air brakes. Had these brakes
failed to work, the momentum could
have been checked with the hand
brakes, but the people on the train say
they heard no whistle for the applica-
ton of the hand-brakes.