The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1896-08-07
FARR WAS TO BLAME
The Evidence Before the Coroner
Against the Dead Egineer.
ALWAYS RELIABLE AND COMPETENT
His Disregard of the Danger Signals Not
To Be Explained-Might Have Saved
His Own Life by Jumping, But
Stuck to His Post.

Atlantic City, N. j., Aug. 5.-The
inquest into the mea lown railroad col
lision will probably not be finished be-
fore tomorrow, but the testimony SO
far brought out seems to fix the direct
responsibility for the accident upon the
dead engineer of the Reading railroad
express. Edward Farr. From the tes-
timony, Farr's action in running at
speed of forty eight miles an hour past
a danger signal seems inexplicabie,
and, as the man is dead, the reason
for it will probably never be known.
Farr is given the reputation of having
been an experienced engineer and a
man of exceptionally high moral char
acter, and not of reckless or careless
disposition. Only two weeks previous
to the accident his train was sig
nailed to stop at this very station, and
be promptly brought his train under
control.
Conductor Saw the Danger Signal.
One witness testified - Conductor
Pinkerton of the express-yesterday
afternoon that Farr saw the signal
set at the crossing for he heard him
give the regular signal in reply to no.
tify the towerman that he had the sig
nal-a blast of his whistle. Conductor
Pinkerton intimated rather than
charged that the signal was suddenly
changed on Farr, as he heard tho
whistle blow furiously in a moment
for what he took to be another signal
blast. Still this witness was foneed tc
81, L. he
platform of the car the danger was set,
and the position of the semaphor was
corroborated by every other witness.
1t was shown that Farr made every
effort to stop his train when he saw
the coming collision and succeeded in
reducing its speed from forty five
miles an hour to fifteen miles in few
hundred feet. He might have jumped
after putting on the air brakes and
reversing his engine, but he died with
his hand on the lever of his engine.
Towerman's straightforward Story.
Tower operator George E. Hauser,
who set the signals, told a straight
forward story as to the positions of
the semaphores, and declared that he
did not move the signals of the Read
ing line from the way they were set
when he entered the tower, which was
at danger, but only moved those on
the West Jersey road to clear track.
Witnesses testified that 1t is usual to
give first els SIS express right of way
on railroads over such trains as the
excursion, and that Hauser did an un-
usual thing III giving the latter train
the right of way. Still as the danger
signal was set for him Farr should
have stopped even if it was usual for
his train to got the right of way. Fire
man Hollahan of the express testified
that he did not see the signals until
the train was within twenty-five feet
of the distant signal and it was set at
danger. He knew nothing of Farrs
action, as he could not see him from
his side of the cab across the top of
the boiler, and saved his own life by
running back to the tender. Engineer
Greiner of the excursion train testi-
fed that he got clear signal and
went over the tracks at the crossing at
the rate of thirty miles an hour. He
did not notice the express particularly
until it was nearly atop of his train as
he was attentively watching for his
signals and supposed the express
would stop at the danger signal.