The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1895-11-18
PLUNGE OF A TROLLEY CAR
The Loaded Vehicle Leaps Into the
CuyahOga River.
LIST OF DEAD AND MISSING
Through Receiving tho Wrong Signals
Given the M0torman Speeds His
Car Into q Draw - Fifteen
Persons Killed.

Cleveland, u, NOV. lI-Up 10 .
o'clock this evening the bodies of fifteen
victims Of last nights catastrophe had
been recovered. This accounts for all
but four of the passengers known to
have been on the trolley car at the time
1t made it's dreadful plunge from the
open Central viaduct draw into the
Cuyahoga river.
The verified list of the dead and miss
ing is as follows: James Mclaughlin,
base ball player; Henry X. Meckleburg,
tailor; Edward Hoffman, conductor;
Mrs. John A. Saurenheimer, Miss Bessie
Davis, school teacher; Harry w. Fos-
ter, clerk; Miss Minnie C. Brown:
Curl Lepthene, or Clemens, pianist;
Mrs. A. Hoffman. Gertie Hoffman, 3
years old; Harvey Hoffman. Martha
Palmer. Marie Mettgen, domestic; Au-
gusta Sarinski, Louis F. Huletz, mail
carrier.
The missing are: Lottie Voth, Miss
Martha Saurenheimer, B. G. Page,
Matthew Gallagher. At an early hour
this morning Augustus Rodgers, the
motorman In charge Of the car, was ar
rested at his home and brought to the
central station, where he was ques-
toned by the coroner and police ofti-
cials. He stated that Conductor Hof-
man gave him the signal to go ahead.
Asked as to how the conductor could
have given the "all right" signal In the
face of the fact that the red light sig
nails. showing that the draw was open,
was hung on the closed bridge gates.
Rodgers replied that HOFFMAN probably
thonght the draw was just closing IN,
tead of opening. Rodgers was released
after giving bond for $4,000.
Search for Bodies.
A crowd of fully $4,000 spectators
nf hn
this morning, when the search for the
missing bodies was resumed and when
one would be brought up the relatives
of the recovered one would go nearly
mad with grief Some Of the bodies
were horribly mangled.
The bodies Of the four missing are
under the CIR and 1t may take day or
two to raise the trucks and recover
them.
Patrick Looney, the only passenger
of the ill-fated car. who was taken from
the water alive is still at the hospital
in q critical condition. He has not re-
gained consciousness since being taken
there.
The most plausible theory regarding
the cause of the disaster Is the removal
of the circuit breaker. which was re-
placed by derailing switch about two
weeks ago. Formerly the circuit was
broken several hundred feet from the
swinging portion of the viaduct, when
ever the draw was open. According to
the new contrivance. which was con-
stantly set to derail a car. 1t was neces-
sary for the car to stop. The conductor
would set the he''derailer" and signal the
motorman to go ahead. This procedure
was enacted last night and as the misty
rain had so covered the glass in the
hull hn ,tn, -
been unable to see the danger lights
depending solely upon the conductors
signal. The conductor went down to
death with his car and it will never be
known what caused him to fail to see
the lights or know that the bridge was
swung.
The MotOrman's Story.
Motorman Rodgers in an interview
said: Il stopped at the derailing
switch as / always do. ] saw the con-
ductor go ahead. ! watched him, and
he gave me the signal to come on.
did rs directed. gave the motor one
notch as l saw no red lights, and nat.
urally thought that everything was all
right. As I struck the gates, I heard
some one yell Jump" turned off the
power as much as possible and jumped.
After the car plunged into the river I
ran down the bridge to the Hay Mar
ket in order to notify the police and
then went to the docks and helped. I
was arrested at my home late last night
and did not know the police were after
me-"
c. r. Brenner. the captain Of the
bridge. was standing at the guard gates
at the time the car approached. He
says he saw the conductor run ahead to
the switch and signal the motorman
to proceed, and that the car was going
at the speed of six miles per hour
when 1t struck the gates. He made n
futile attempt to hold the gates and
would have been carried down had It
not been for a chum who was with
him and dragged him aside. Just as
the lights went out he saw the people
rush to the front Of the car and heard
girl scream: '.Oh, my God" He says
the car did not turn much In fail.
ing