The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1896-06-20
/ have for wheel. when it comes 70
this that the bicycle business must
have its own hymns in church give
in Chicago Chronicle.
A DUEL BETWEEN ENGINES.

CaldWeilites will be interested In the
railway collision which occurred at
Columbus, Ohio, recently. Nearly 25,-
600 people saw the sight. A. L. Street
er, a passenger conductor of many
years service has had in his head the
idea Of bringing two engines together
for many years. In w. ii. Fisher, gen.
eral passenger agent of the Columbus
Hooking Valley s. Toledo railway, he
found man who appreciated his idea,
and for over month the two have
been preparing to put a realistic drama
on the boards. An eastern exchange
gives the following account of the af-
fair:
"The great crowd inspected two en-
gines, ate out the caterers, bought sew
eral hogsheads of water at FIVE cents a
glass, and waited for the event at Buck
eye Park, inst outside of Columbus
The multitude stood on grassy slope
which rose from the tracks in semi
circular sweep. Down below stood,
within Misunderstanding distance, the two
combatants. the locomotives, A. l..
Streeter ana W. Fl. Fisher, painted
from the trucks up in red, white and
blue. They were forty-iYe ton eight
wheelers, with 16 by % cylinders.
"The crews, Pat ]. Clancy, engineer,
and H. E. Arnold, fireman of the Fish
or, and VIM. NJ Booth, engineer, and
John d. Loomis, fireman of the Street
er, were ready and felt elated at being
given chance to risk their lives on
this occasion. Nothing was taken
from the engines, the broom and the
oil cans and the shovel were left to ride
into the collision, and the tenders were
heaped with coal. As the two locomo-
tives backed to their positions, track
tOrpedoes exploded, and a second ex-
plosion occurred when they had reach
ed their terminal, the Streeter, 5000
feet from the meeting point, and the
Fisher, which had down grade, being
handicapped at $500 feet. The signal
was given by telephone. The crowd
cheered the first puffs of smoke, then
there was compile silence. Clancy had
opened his lever few notches only, so
that his pet would start without dane
ing jig, then had pulled the lever wide
open, nOtched the reverse, so that the
engines would not back after colliding,
and had jumped. Booth had done the
same on his engine. The two trains
came down into the siding at faster
and faster rate. Then, hardly fifty feet
from the scheduled spot, came the col
lisiOn. There was a crash loud and re-
sounding, sounds of splintering tim
bers and swapping steel. Like two
wild beasts that had been crouching
and suddenly jumped at each others
threats, the two engines reared, the
two boilers stood upright, while under
them and about them were splintered
and telescOped cars, and q mass of
wreckage. Splinters, castings and bolts
shot upward, some of the missiles going
dangerously near the crowd, and one
striking down man. All this was the
happening of but second. Then came
the Kissing clouds of steam which
wrapped the wreck in mantle. The
crowd was silent, strangely 50, as this
vivid sight impressed itself on their
minds, then came mighty shout and
as one man the crowd closed upon the
wreck, and with rocks and stones went
to hammering off pieces of iron and
bolts to carry away as souvenirs. Each
train carried two dummies, which were
to have been placed In the cabs, but it
was feared that the deception would
not be seen through, and women would
faint thinking the crew had forgotten
to jump. But the dummies rode as
brakemen, and had the sawdust knock
ed out of them. The trains were esti.
mated to be running about forty miles
an hour at the point of contact. The |
engines and tenders were total wreck,
and will not bring much to the Colum-
bus scrap iron man who bought them |
before the collision. OF the Streeter |
train, the first coal car was smashed to |
kindling wood, and the second was tel
escoped. On the Fisher train the first
car was demolished and the second left
the rails. The third car and caboose of
each train were not injured in the
least.
"In spite of all precaution, the spec
tacle was marred by an accident. A
piece of casting with bolt attached,
went hurtling through the air. Several
men near the ropes lodged the missile,
but 7. Q. Peck, chief clerk in the office
Of General Passenger Agent Fisher,
was struck, and suffered a compound
fracture of the right leg, The injured
man was taken in a special train to his
Columbus home, the crowd fled out of
the enclosure, and a. L. Streeter had
made a success of his wild scheme"