The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-12-29
CAHABA RIVER BRIDGE CRASH.
THE TOTAL NUMBER KILLED STILL
INVOLVED IN DOUBT.

Twenty-One Bodies Already Taken
From the River-Others Believed
to Be i'm the Water and Several
Persons May Have Been Complete
Iy Burned-At Least Two More
Passengers Missing-TwO OF the In
jured Survivors Sure to Die-Two
Deaths 10 Result From the Smash
Up of the Two Wrecking Trains.
Birmingham, Ala, Dec. 2S.-Few further
details are obtainable as to the terrible
railroad wreck at the Cahaba river bridge
Yesterday. The railroad officials have q
list of twenty-one dead, that number of
bodies have been taken out of the river,
but the belief gains ground that there
are more dead bodies yet in the river, or
else some were entirely consumed by the
fire. The railroad officials, however, say
the place has been thoroughly searched.
Its seem impossible to ascertain how
many passengers were on the train. Near
ly all held round-trip holiday tickets, and
had been away from home to spend Christ
mas. Many were on their way back to
the various mining towns when the disas-
ter occurred. Only one ticket was sold
out of Birmingham for the ill-fated train.
Conductor Connell, who knew better than
any one else the number aboard, was
killed and burned up in the wreck 1t
develops this morning that d man named
I4ibbs and his wife got on the train al
Guiners, six miles this side of the wreck.
They are missing, and 1t is probable that
they wer burned in the wreck, This runs
the list of known dead up to twenty-three.
others to the number Of six, who were
supposed to be missing, have been ac-
counted for. The corrected list of dead
and missing stands as fOilOWS.
Railroad employees:
Frank White, engineer.
James Bowling, express messenger.
George Carney, fagman.
p. Connell, conductor.
Tom Streeter, porter.
r.. Webb, bridge watchman.
Passengers:
Bruce Phillips of Blocton.
T. W. Martin of Brookwood
Mrs. Henry Hanbury and two children
Rev. r. II. Blount of Birmingham.
Miss Ada Powers of Blocton.
ID. j. Powers of Blocton.
Mrs. Emma Powers and two children
Mrs. r. Little of Blocton.
James Gardner, mother and sister, of
Mr. Libbs and wife of Guiner.
The injured are:
Henry Hanbury, will probably die
Andrew Bryson, Will die
r. Eckels.
Will Gardner.
Miss Booth.
Sam Stuart, fireman.
A child of Mrs. Powell and Mrs. Walker,
all slightly hurt.
The injured are from mining towns in
this district. The only persons on the train
to escape unhurt were three little chill
dren of Mrs. Walker. 1t is thought that
some were cremated alive.
Another examination of the bridge shows
tnat the spikes on one side had been
drawn for rafi-lengtn, Which Indicated
that rail was moved out of place to delib-
erately wreck the train.
The story that three men robbed the
dead and dying, as told by one of the sur
Vivors, has not yet been confirmed. But
the railroad officials, who are sure it was
the work of train wreckers, and an army
of detectives are working on the case.
w. d. Ross, a bridge carpenter, hurt in
the collision of two Of the relief trains at
the scene of the disaster, died to-day. An
other bridge carpenter named Estes had
both his legs cut off in the second wreck,
and will die.
OF the wounded in the bridge disaster
two will likely die tonight.