The San Francisco call., 1896-08-01
Various Explanations as to the
Cause of New Jerseys Rail-
road Horror.
ENGINEER FARR's SAD DEATH.
During a Farewell Trip Over the
Road His Body Is Mangled Under
the Engine.

ATLANTIC CITY, N. J., July 31.-As
result of the terrible collision on the
Meadows last evening Letween the Read
ing Railroad express from Philadelphia
and the Bridgeton excursion train out of
here, forty-seven people are dead and
forty-four are lying in the hospital here
more or less seriously hurt. OF the in
jured in the hospital several are expected
to die. Besides those seriously enough
hurt to be in the hospital score or more
of people were bruised and shaken up and
went to cottages. The fearful shock of
the collision is illustrated IL the fact that
of the forty-seven dead forty-two were
killed outright Of the dead forty-tw
have been identified and the bodies of
three women, one man and boy are
living at the undertaking-shops awaiting
claimants.
The responsibility for the accident is
hard to place at this time, but the burden
of it seems to rest upon the dead engi-
neer of the Reading train, Edward Farr,
though an official examination may clear
his name.
The list of dead and injured. almost
all of whom are from Bridgeton, fol-
lows: Dead = Charles Mutta. John
Greiner, Charles E. AckIer, Charles P.
McGear, Richard Trenchard, S. P. Muir
ply, MiIville; Joseph Peters, J. D. john
son. Charles d. Burroughs (supposed to be
Charles Sow, H. F. Bell. w. @. Loper.
Mr. and Mrs. P. II. Goldsmith, Samuel
Thorn, baggagemasIer; Franklin Dubois.
Joshua Ernest, Mrs. Mary Wentzel, Mrs.
lydia Carl, Pearl Mutta, Mrs, Ellen May
Mrs. II. F. Bell. Mary Anna Frees Mrs.
Mary Frees, Mrs. ]. D. Bateman, Ed Farr,
engineer Reading train; Charles Seibert,
James M. Bateman, husband of Mrs. Bate
man; A. Peters, son of Joseph Peters;
Robert NJ. Lopez, Mrs. Tillie Leeds. Mrs.
n. Loper, Mamie Chimney, NJ. May, boy;
William SpauIding, transfer agent Read
ing Railroad, Philadelphia, Henry
Hughes, William P. Rickett, E. E. Taylor,
Joseph Cheney. Charles May, Mrs. Sallie
Frees, three unknown women, one un-
known boy, one unknown man.
The injured-Howard Woodward, Mrs.
A. E. Bott, Lizzie Smalley, Caroline
Smalley, c. D. Wrazer and wife, Robert
Irwin Dubois, II years old Mrs. M. Keiger,
Jacob Johnson, Stanley Wenzel, Mrs. S.
Johnson. Mary Shipp, c. c. R1nick, Violet
Alfred, Mrs. Laura Pierce, William Simp-
kins, Mason Worth. Albert Trader,
William Houghton, Edward Seeley, Ches-
ter Burger, Howard Woodlawn, ex-Judge
H1tchman, Mrs. Hitchman, Mrs. E. Alb
bott, Howard Smith, David Friers, Mrs.
Joseph Rieger, Albert Taylor, Jacob Hill
ton, Charles Horner, Harry Watson,
Lizzie Ruter, G. w. Horner, Mrs. Faunce
Fratinger, Albert H. Taylor, K. s. Wat
son, w. johnson. Mrs. Lizzie NJ. Mutta,
Samuel Mutta, Howard Woodlin, Samuel
Wilson, Stanford Wilson.
Many of the injuries are more than
ordinarily serious All through last night
Atlantic City was in an uproar. Thou
sands thronged out to the scene of the
wreck and crowded around the railway
station and pushed and crowded to watch
the trains discharge their loads of dead
and injured. As it was gradually learned
that nearly every one on the Reading
express had escaped uniniured the crowd
gradually thlnned out, the anxiety of rela-
tives and friends being relieved by the
safe arrival of those they feared were dead
OF maimed.
The uninjured and those only slightly
hurt among the Bridgeton excursionists
were In frenzy of agony.
The train struck was the first section of
the excursion train and those OF the
second section fiocked to the hospital and
norgue as the victims were brought in.
Two miles out on the Meadows the wreck
ing crews of the Reading and the West
Jersey roads were toiling by the light of
huge bonfires to clear away the wreck and
splinters or broken cars BY dawn they
had practically cleared the broken tracks.
Broken and battered out of shape the
hinge engine of the express lay on its side
bv the track. Pinned beneath, with his
pale, blood-stained face staring into those
of the men working, was Farr, the
engineer.
Not until this morning were the workers
able to raise the wrecked engine and draw
from beneath it the crushed body of the
engineer. It was placed in box and
taken to Farr's home here. 1t was re-
ported last night when Mrs. Farr heard of
her husbands death she fell dead. This
was not so. She fell in a swoon and to-
night is living in a serious condition from
the shock she got.
Houser. the operator in the signal
tower, set danger signals for the Reading
train when he gave the excursion train
the right of way. The question is, Did he
set the signal in time for Engineer Farr to
see 1t, or did he become excited when he
saw collision imminent and set it too
late for Farr to stop his train? Farr was
an experienced engineer, and it seems In
credible that he would rush past danger
signal down to crossing that was being
approached by train he could clearly
see.
Further, the Reading has the right OF
way at the crossing over Pennsylvania
trains; and. still further, an express has
the right of way over an excursion special.
Still, in view of the statement Of Engineer