Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1896-08-05
THE TRAINS COLLIDED
Came Together at a Diagonal
Railroad Crossing.
THE RESULTS WERE sICKENING
An Express Catches an Excursion Train
Broadside, Literally CIeaving
1t In Twain.

Atlantic City. N. j., Aug. ga
railroad accident, horrible in its details
and sickening in Its results, occurred
this evening. just outside of this city,
and as result about 100 persons are
either killed or injured.
The Reading railroad express, which
left Philadelphia at $40 o'clock this
evening for Atlantic City, crashed into
Pennsylvania railroad excursion train
at the second signal tower. about four
miles out from here
The Pennsylvania train was return.
ing TO Bridgeton with party of excur.
sionists from that place. Millville and
neighboring towns. It was loaded
with passengers, and rough estimate
of the killed and injured at late hour
places the number at 100. 1t is hoped
that this is an exaggeratior, but the
number is undoubtedly more than fifty.
AT the second signal tower, the
tracks Of the two roads diagonally
cross. The Reading train was given
the signal to stop, but the brakes either
failed to work or the speed of the ex-
press was too great to be checked in
time. 1t caught the excursion train
broadside and ploughed through, liter
ally cleaving it in twain. The engine
of the Reading train was shattered to
pieces. Every car on the excursion
train was jammed to its fullest ca
pacity.
As soon as the news reached Atlantic
City, the utmost CONSERVATION pre-
vailed, but the authorities were equal
to the emergency. Relief trains were
dispatched to the scene, loaded with
cots and bearing staffs of surgeons.
As quick as the bodies were recovered,
they were carried into the local hos
pitfalls and undertaker's shops.
A general fire alarm was sounded,
and the department promptly respond.
ed, and aided in the heartrending work
Of digging for the victims Fear grew
into despair and horror as the vigorous
work of the relief gangs revealed the
awful extent of the disaster.
The first Reading relief train bore
into this city twenty. y.seven mangled
corpses, men, women and children.
The next train, not an hour later, car
ried fifteen of the MANNED and wound
ed, and two of these died soon after
reaching the city.
As train after train piled to the
scene Of the wreck. and came back
with its CHASTITY burdens, the sani-
tarium, which does duty as the city hos
pital. quickly found its capacity over
taxed. Meanwhile others of the dead
and injured were being carried to the
private hospital at Ocean and. Pacific
avenues
Eward Farr, engineer ON the Read
ing train, was killed outright, as was
another railroad man who rode ON the
engine with him. This man, whose
name has not yet been learned, saw the
collision coming and lesped from the
cab an instant before the crash came
Almost at the same instant the engine
out its way through and caught him
directly in its path. His body and that
of Farr were found under heap of
debris. but the engineer lay in what
remained Of the cab, and his right
hand still clasped the throttle. He had
been faithful unto death, and met it at
his post
The fireman on that train leaped
few seconds before and escaped with
trifiing injuries.
Samuel Thornton, baggage-master
on the Reading train, is among the
dead.
JAIME M. Bateman, Bridgeton un-
dertaker. is known to be killed. He
was in the third car, and his hat was
found lying among the mass of broken
timbers.
Richard Trenehard, a Bridgeton ma
chinist, and his wife are both dead.
Conductor Kelly, of the Pennsylva.
MIA train, had both arms and legs
broken, and was internally injured.
Albert ]. Mosebaoh, of No. 1S North
Eighth street, Philadelphia, was ON the
Reading train. He escaped unhurt.
The excursion train was made up of
fifteen cars, the foremost of which was
baggage car. This and the next two
coaches caught the full force of the
crash, and were utterly demolished
What remained Of the third car was
tumbled into a ditch at the roadside
The responsibility for the accident can
not now be fixed.
William Thurlow, telegraph operator
in the tower house, was arrested to-
night and held, pending an inquiry.