The Portland daily press., 1897-10-26

ated Press representative four hours after
the accident occurred on train that
passed this point.
None of the injured it Is reported to-
night are in q serious condition.
When the wreckers got sufficient tackle
on the sleeping car Glen Alpine to drag
her up, there was much excitement and
speculation as it was believed that there
must be some bodies in this car, the
most deeply submerged OF the lot, but
not body was discovered.
just to the rear of the Glen Alpine was
the car Hermes, which in the plunge left
its trucks on the track and landed flat on
its bottom in the river, but only in three
feet of water. The porter of this car,
William Patterson, tells the most graphic
story of the wreck and one which will
probably be found to be the most luci
explanation of how SO many sleeping
people were miraculously saved from a
fearful death. He said:
Just before the accident, / was
awakened from doze by the slowing up
OF the train and got up, thinking we
were nearing Peekskill. 1 looked out of
the window and just as | did SO. there
came crash and the leap of the car to-
wards the river. was thrown to the
floor but getting up in minute seized
hammer and rushing outside broke all
the windows on the shore side and in a
few minutes had got my twelve passen-
gers out. I am positive TINT everyone got
out because there was only foot or SO of
water in the car at the time. When all
my passengers had gotten out, we begin
to look for the others. The car Glen AL
pine was just ahead of mine and had
plunged into deeper water, SO that one
end was completely submerged while the
other was up against the end of mine,
and trifie higher. saw the people
hurrying out of the high end and 1 am
quite positive that before the car settled
into deep water we got every body out.
Some of the people were scantily dressed,
AS their clothes could not be found in the
dark. They hurried away and went to
New York.
''After we had gotten out all the sleep
ing car passengers we saw some people
from the combination car swimming in
the river and we helped them out. L am
afraid that some people got out of the
other cars all right but were drowned be-
cause of the cold water cramping them. -
Col. Cole said this morning that the
bank may have given away and that 1t
was equally possible that a driving rod
on the engine had broken and, knocking
it off the track, had occasioned the
disaster.
A drizzling rain started in at an early
hour today and the outlook was dreary
and dismal in the extreme. The wreckers
the bodies known to be in the river OF
any Others they might land. The diver,
who took six bodies out of this car last
evening, said he could find no more
bodies.
There was found in one car in wallets
and pooketbooks. 5000 in money, in sums
ranging from SIS to $500, and eight gold
watches, one of them being lady's.
There were also great variety of
diamond sleeve buttons. diamond studs
and pearls, all kinds of wearing apparel.
satchels, umbrellas and shoes.
Roadmaster Otis, who is considered one
of the most expert track builders in this
country, was reticent about giving his
opinion as to the cause of the sinking
roadbed, but he told a representative of
the Associated Press that it was due
primarily to some almost unaccountable
cause.
The sand and gravel had been washed
out leaving a crust under the track which
collapsed as soon as the weight of the
train was put on it. Mr.. Otis could not
understand why the retaining wall of
solid masonry gave way as it did.
"This section of the road" he said,
"stands in a depth of thirty five feet of
water. In former years we have had con-
siderable trouble at point known as
Beverly bridge, half mile north of this
point, where the construction of the road
is similar to this part of the bed, but
there have been no serious Washouts in at
least fifteen years"
The exact cause that threw the engine
and its burden into the dark water could
only be told by the engineer and fireman.
They are dead
Today 1t is said that the recent high
tides had weakened and insidiously
washed away the road bed.
The engine was located by a diver at
1880 this afternoon, but no bodies We're
discovered. The engine was about fifty
feet from the shore in about sixty feet of
water and firmly imbedded in the mud.
The cab WAS completely wrecked and
the tender had become severed from the
engine. The diver was under water for
about twenty minutes and his failure to