The record-union., 1897-10-25
the scene of the wreck, gives this de-


o'clock when 1 was awakened by some
one in my yard calling for help. Look
ing out of my window, 1 saw sleep
ing car porter, who shouted, For Gods
sake, man, If you own a boat, come
quickly! Our train is in the river and
people are drowning 9
'I dressed myself, and accompanied
by the porter. got into my row. boat and
rowed around the curve to where the
train was in the river. When we
reached the cars. which were sub
merged nearly to their roofs, the engine
being entirely out of sight, the crews
of the tug boats were making efforts
1 to save passengers. The first man
saw them take out was the agent of
the express car. The first persons we
succeeded in reScuing were two Chinese
who We're sitting on the roof of the
smoker. One had his arm broken. We
put them ashore and then took three
persons off the roofs of another car
At the same time people in their I'M
derclothes We're being taken out of the
sleeping car by the crews of several
tugs. One man on shore with an arm
cut off was dying, and we made his last
1lAOiIiEilS as COIIllOIldDle DIS DOSSlD16. L
want TO say that the porters, although
frightened, showed great bravery and
saved many lives"
One of the train men who survived
the disaster ran to the first signal tower
to telegraph for help. The place where
the wreck occurred is rather Isolated
1t is just at the entrance of what is
known as Kings cut, three miles south
of Garrisons, and five miles north of
Peekskill.
Two other express trains We're follow
ing closely behind the Inflated State
express, and the engine Of one of them
was sent to Garrisons for General
Manager Toucey, who lives there, while
the other engine hurried to Peekskill
| for medical aid.
Mr.. Toucey was the first official of
the road to arrive at the scene, reach
ing there at 7:30. The engine which
brought him there steamed to Cold
| Springs and returned with Drs. Wins
low, F'illebrown and Murdock In the
meantime Drs. Charles and PerIey
Mason, ]. M. Tilden, P. c. Snowden and
E. D. Lynn had arrived
OF the dramatic horror of the situa-
biO1A III tItC car WHen II
left the track and struck the water
perhaps the best account is had from
the story of Herman Acker of Peeks-
kill, the baggage and mail sorter Ack-
er was suffering badly from the shock
when seen, but the scenes he graphi-
cally described. He said:
John Shaw, agent of the Westcott
Express Company, and myself We're in
| the compartment, when suddenly there
was terrible bump, and then a rush
| of water that forced us toward the
ceiling. The car seemed to turn COM
pletely over, and had filled with water
to within about foot of the top. When
we struck the car whirled completely
around, the end which the Chinese oc-
cupied being under water, while our
end was tilted up. We swan around
and got a ventilator open, noting the
situation. got an ak from a tool box
which was afie.est and smashed a panel
in the end OF the car. We crawled
through the hole to the roof of the car
and row boat came out and took US
| ashore
! Acker has been railroader for many
years, and has escaped from three Sc
| IlOuS dClu6lIlS Ills dI1 - DcOAJ Nde
and his body bruised. Shaw escaped
injury.
The first victim of the disaster found
was lying on the shore dying. He was
badly bruised about the head and body
and his right arm was cut off near the
shoulder, the bleeding stump alone
showing The member was not found
The man was placed on a train and
taken to Peekskill, but died on the way.
Five men were rescued from the top
of a floating car a few minutes after
the accident. They were put on a train
and taken to Peekskill about ten miles
down the road. They We're admitted
to the Helping Hand Hospital where
their wounds were dressed. OF the five
three were Chinese, and none were IA
tally injured The Americans were:
John E. Ryan of Jersey City, should
er and knee bruised; Clarence Morgan
Aurora, N Y, aged 26 years, broken
shoulder. The three Chinese were suf-
fering from scalp wounds.
Morgan escaped from a floating car
through a broken panel, and though
badly hurt he helped another passenger
out.
was in one of the last coaches which
remained on the track. He secured an
ak and chopped out a panel of one of
the partly submerged cars, and helped
to rescue four people.
AT s O'Clock one of the express trains
left the scene with the man who had
died on the track and about twenty
five injured persons.
The dead man and five injured were
left at Peekskill, where the injured were
taken to the Helping Hand Hospital
while the train proceeded to New York
with the rest of the injured This train
had hardly left the scene of the dis
aster when a special engine arrived
there, bringing Division Superintendent
Mccoy and Trainmasters Wyck and
Stack from Tarrytown. and almost si-
multaneously wrecking train came
from Poughl1eepsie The officials saw
at once that the wrecking cars would
be of little avail in raising the cars
from their position in the river, where
| they were almost completely sub
merged, SO the Chapman Wrecking
Company of New York was notified to
send a river derrick and floats to raise
| the cars.
General Manager Toucey gave to the
representative of the Associated Press
the following statement as to the cause
of the disaster:
1.-THE accident was caused by the bed
Of the railroad being washed out in
some inexplicable manner. In this un-
dermined condition the track sank as