The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1896-08-05
Employees TESTIMONY
In the Atlantic City Meadows
Ma:saore Investigation.
A CLEAR TRACK FOR WEST JERSEY,

Operator uauser Tcstifles That the Read.
ing Train Was Given the Danger Signal.
and Should Have Waited for the Other
Train to Pass.
ATLANTIC CITY, Aug. 5.-There were
several new developments at yesterdays
session of Coroner -McLaughlin's inquest
into the recent meadow disaster, by which
forty-four persons were killed and rs
many more injured. All the men most
closely concerned in the accident gave tes'
timony, including the night towerman,
George F. Hauser, Fireman Thomas Hal
Than and Conductor Pinkerton, Of the
Reading express, and Engineer Greiner
and Fireman Newall, of the West Jersey
excursion train. Arthur Stiles, resident
of Atlantic City, who was riding on his
wheel along the turnpike road, and saw
the collision, also testified.
Nearly all these witnesses agreed that
Engineer Edward Farr, of the Reading
train, who was found dead with his hand
on the throttle, had done everything in
his power to stop his train when he saw
that collision was imminent, and every
one of them except Greiner stated or in
ferred that the West Jersey train could
either have been stopped after Engineer
Greiner saw the Reading laundering along
towards him, or so handled it that only the
two engines would have come together
This would have meant the death of the
men In the two cabs, very likely, but 1t
would have saved the passenger coaches,
Conductor Pinkerton, Of the Reading
train, said this in 80 many words He
added that any man Of good Judgment
would know that at the rate the Reading
train was running it could not be stopped
before reaching the crossing.
Pinkerton also gave the impression that
the signals had not been properly worked.
According to his Interpretation of En-.
gineer Fairs whistles, a certain signal
had been given the Reading train and
then suddenly changed to another. The
first must have been the right Of way sig
nal and the second the danger Farr
whistled to know which was right, but it
was too late to stop the train.
A buzz went over the room when George
F. Hauser, the night operator, was called.
He is small, slightly built man, 81 years
old, and the pallor Of his face betrayed the
mental trouble under which he has been
laboring. He testified that he first came
to the tower on June 30 last, having been
formerly employed as motorman for the
Union Traction company, Philadelphia,
for eighteen months. Before that he
worked ON the Middletown branch Of the
Pennsylvania railroad. He had been in
this company's employ altogether about
two years and half.
He emphatically declared that he was
sober at the time Of the accident, and had
drank nothing Intoxicating that day. He
reached the tower about 6 :38 and relieved
Day Operator Long. Witness took off his
coat and vest and prepared for work. As
he turned from the closet the West Jersey
indicator rang, notifying the approach of
a north bound train. He looked at the
clock and saw that the Reading express
was due in about three minutes He looked
down and saw the West Jersey approach
ing. He did not pull the clear signal right
away, as he saw the Reading approaching
in the distance. He saw that the West
Jersey was q little late, and then gave
them the right of way. He could not, by
mistake, have pulled the wrong lever and
given the Reading the right of way He
pulled the home signal first giving tho
GEAR track 10 inc Wtsu CcIScy. lhSh ho
pulled the distant semaphore.
The West Jersey was then two or three
train lengths this side of the home signal.
The West Jersey kept coming. Then he
saw the Reading round the curve. He ex-
pected to see the Reading slow up to let
the West Jersey over The Reading was
then about mile and half away from
the cautionary signal, which was set at
danger. He was watching the Reading,
and saw that it kept coming very fast and
had not vet shut off. The bell had rung
for the Reading train He saw the steam
Of the Reading go down as is usual when
1t is turned off. The engineer of the Read
ing gave two blasts of his whistle, but
both trains Kept on, and the collision &C.
Cured at Gas.
He heard no sound of the Reading put
ting on brakes. He knew the Reading
had the right Of way, but 1t was so far
from the other train, which was coming
up that he used his own Judgment and
let the West Jersey come. He would be
disobeying rules to stop an express in
favor of an excursion train, but he thought
he had not done SO in this case, because
the West Jersey was so much nearer the
crossing. He looked both ways before
giving the signals. The signals can be
seen for mile and half, and when set
at danger the train must stop. There Is
plenty of time to do So The signals gov
ern the movements Of trains and are SUI
prelne He was obliged to admit that an
engineer need use no Judgment OF his own
II the signal gives him clear track.
Thomas Hallihan, the Reading fireman,
ltIn ho Arc
somewhere near the distant signal. When
he saw that q collision was inevitable he
went down the step to get off, having said |
nothing to the engineer He finally
thought he would take chances and did
not jump The engineer put ON the air
brakes, and to witness mind did every
thing possible to stop the train. The train
was going forty to fifty miles an hour at
the distant board. He could not say
whether or not the drivers of the engine
had been reversed before the collision.
When the collision occurred, he thought,
the West Jersey was going twelve or
fifteen miles an hour.
John Greiner, the West Jersey engineer, |
declared that hc was guided only by sig |
nails, regardless of the approach of other |
trains. He got the signal of right Of way |
and he continued on, but he had known |
of instances when the signals had been |
quickly changed. When he saw the Read
ing train bearing down on them he shouted
to the fireman: Look out! My God, he's |
not going to stop!" He was about to |
Jump, but something told him not to, and
this saved his life, for the wreck occurred !
lust where he would have landed. His en-
gine was cut loose by the wreck, and after
stopping 1t he went back to the assistance
Of the injured. When witness saw that
the crash was coming he could not posi-
bly, have stopped his train in time, in
spite of what Conductor Pinkerton had
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