The Roanoke daily times. (Roanoke, Va.) 1895-1897, 1896-07-31

Slckenlng III Its results, occurred this
evening just outside of this city, and as II
result 100 persons are either killed or in
jured. The Reading railroad express
which left Philadelphia at 5:40 O'Clock
this evening for Atlantic City crashed
into II Pennsylvania railroad excursion
train mt the second signal tower about
four miles out from here.
The Pennsylvania was returning to
Bridgeton with party of eXcursionists
from that place, Millville and neighbor-
ing towns. it was loaded with passen-
gers and rough estimate of the killed
and injured at Il late hour places the
number at 100. 1t Chopped that is an cxag-
gregation but the number is undoubtedly
more than 30.
AT the second signal tower the tracks
of the two roads tliagonally cross The
Reading train was given the signal but il
either failed tO work or the speed of the
express train was too great to stop 1t
caught the excursion train broatlside and
ploughed through, literally clcaving it in
twain The engine of the Reading train
was shattered to pieces. Every car was
damned to its fullest capacity
AS soon as the news reached Atlantic
CITY the utmost CONSERVATION prevailed,
but the authorities We're equal 10 the
emergency. Relief trains were dispatched
to the scene loaded with cots and several
surgeons. AS quick as the bodies were
recovered they were carried into the local
hospitals and undertaken shops A gem
eral fire alarm was sounded and the de-
partment promptly responded, aided in
the heart-rending work of digging for the
victims
Fear grew into despair and horror as
the vigorous work of the relief gangs re-
vealed the awful extent of the disaster.
The first Reading relief train bore into
this city twenty-seven mangled corpses,
men, women and children. The next
train not an hour later carried fifty
manned and wounded and two of these
died soon after reaching the city Train
after train piled to the scene of the wreck
and toiled back with its CHASTITY load. The
sanitarium which does duty as the city
hospital, quickly found it's capacity over
taxed. Meanwhile others of the dead and
injured were being carried to the private
hospital Mt Ocean and Pacific avenues
Edward Farr, engineer on the Reading
train, was killed outright, as was another
roadman who rode on the engine with
MN. lhis man, whose name has not yet
been learned, saw the collision coming
and leaped from the cab an instant before
the crash. Almost at the same instant
the engine cut its way through and
caught him directly in its path His body
and that of Farr We're found under heap
Of debris, but the engine lav il what re.
NAMED of the cab and his right hand still
clasped the throttle. He had been faith
full unto death and met it at his post
The fireman on the train had leaped few
seconds before and escaped with trihing
injuries
Samuel Thorn, baggage master on the
Reading train, is among the dead. James
II. Bateman, a Bridgeton undertaken, is
known to be killed. He was in the third
car and his hat was found lying among
the mass of broken timbers. Richard
Trenchard, n Bridgeton machinest, and
his wife are both dead AS time pro-
crossed it seems almost certainty that
fully fifty persons were killed. Conduc-
tor Kelly, of the Pennsylvania train, had
both legs and arms boken and was inter
nally injured.
The excursion train was made up of
fifteen cars, the foremost of which was a
baggage car. This and the next two
coaches caught the full force of the crash
ard were easily demolished. What re-
manned OF the third car was tumbled
into ditch at the roadside.
The responsibility for the accident can
not now he fixed. Charles c. Ryny, of
Bridgeton, who was in the excursion par
ty, was in one OF the rear cars. He es-
capped with severe bruises and so far as
his agitation would permit told the story
of his experience.
When we saw that collision was I'M
avoidable," he said, 1.-THE scene in our car
was terrific Women tainted and men
rushed in mad panic for the door. But
it came almost before we knew it, The
third car was cut right in two and the
lower portion of it lifted bodily from the
track and tumbled over. Every car was
crowded, and it is horrible to think of
the numbers who must be lying under
those ruins. The roof of one of the cars
fell in as mass and everybody in that car
was buried under it. 1t simply dropped
those aboard, but will hope for the best.
l know positively of two in our car who
were killed. They were Mr.. and Mrs
Frank Bell, of Bridgeton. Their daugh-
ter was i'll another car further back and
was not hurt. / don't know who is to
blame. When we were about two miles
out from Atlantic City we came to a stop
out in the meadows and stayed there for
several minutes, but do not know why
think there must have been fully eighty
or a hundred killed The only person
with me was my six-year-old son. ard he
was not hurt. thank God" q;
An Associated Press reporter was on
one of the first relief trains sent out by
the Pennsylvania railroad and he was the
first newspaper representative on the
scene. The train was in charge of mum
Der of railroad officials and Prosecutor
Perry, of Atlantic City. 1t drew up in
the darkness few feet this side OF the
fatal point.
Onia6 nv q cts with an blood -o,l