The age-herald., 1897-09-09
OTHERS FATALLY INJURED
The Engine Boilers Explode and Set Fire
 to the Wreck.
WILLIAM J. BRYAN ON ONE TRAIN
But Escaped Without Injury-Did Heroic Work Taking Victims Out of the Debris and Aiding To Alleviate the Suf-
 ferings of Injured.

Kansas City, Mo-. Sept. S.-A special to the Times from Emporia. Kan, says:
 One of the worst accidents in the his tory of the Santa Fe railroad occurred three miles east of here at about z o'clock tonight. Twelve or fifteen per sons were killed and as many more bad ly hurt. The fast mail train going east and the Mexico and California express was pulled by two locomotives, and when they struck the engine drawing the fast mail the boilers of all three engines ex- ploded and tore hole in the ground so deep that the smoking car of the west bound train ran on top of the three en- zines and two mail cars and balanced there without turning over. The pas sengers in the smoking car escaped through the windows. The front end of this car was enveloped in a volume of stifiing smoke and steam, and the rear door was damned tight into the wreck of the car behind. The cars in the hole and the smoking car burned to ashes in a short time. In climbing out of the smoking car several men fell through the rifts into the furnace and it is impossible to tell whether they es- CdpeQ UT were UuIIeu to uedlH.
 The westbound train carried seven or eight coaches and it's passengers in- cluded many excursionists who had been to hear Hon. William J. Bryan speak at the county fair at Burlinghame. MT. Bryan, himself, was on the train, but wes riding in the rear Pullman some distance from the cars which were wrecked. He states that nothing but a heavy jolt was experienced by the pas sengers in his coach.
 MT. Bryan was one of the foremost in the crowd of rescuers. He helped to carry out the dead and wounded and gave the greatest attention to their care. One poor fellow, who was badly man. glcd, called to MT. Bryan and said:
 II went to hear you today. l am now dying, and want to shake your hand and say God bless you. If you possi- bly, can, MT. Bryan, get me drink of waterh
 Mr. Bryan went into the fast mail car, one end of which was burning, and came out with the water, which he gave to the suffering passenger. He brought out cushions for others of the wounded and was everywhere possible to admin fster to the wants of the sufferers.
 It is feared that nearly all of the mail clerks perished in the disaster, but so far only eight bodies have been taken from the wreck.
 THE DEAD. g
 Those killed are:
 JAMES BENIN, engineer, Topeka.
 NAT HOLLTSTER, fireman, Topeka. ] J. F. SEvDRES, Kansas City, ex- press messenger, body almost consumed by fire.
 WILLIAM F'RDSBY, engineer.
 R. A. DORIAN, Emporfa, postal clerk.
 w. GONZALES, fireman westbound tradn.
 UNKNOWN MAN, tramp, Topeka.
 w. BRlAGiMlAiN.
 SERIOUSLY WOUNDED.
 Among the most seriously injured are:
 Claude Holiday, Lawrence; express messenger, legs broken, will die.
 D. c. Erler. Kansas City, express mes- senger; legs broken, will die.
 John Dagan, Topeka; hip smashed.
 J. G. Butler, county attorney, Chase county; hip broken, may die.
 William F. Keen, Kansas City, leg and arms broken.
 P. K. Metz, Atchison, badly bruised.
 Phdl Schur, Kansas City; hip crushed.
 c. A. Van vlort, brakeman, Kansas City; badly bruised.
 William Patrick, Kansas City; leg and arm broken
 N. c. Adams, painfully bruised.
 Mike Sweeney, Gainesville, Tex. back injured.
 Ben Waters, St. Joseph. Mo, pas senger on the westbound t,ain is miss- ing.
 The engineer of the westbound train had received orders to meet the fast mail at Emporia and was making up lost time. These two are the fastest trains on the Santa Fe system, and the westbound train must have been run ming at a speed of at least forty miles an hour.
 The westbound express was going around slight curve and met the fast mail within 200 feet of the seven or eight cars making up the Mexico and Califor- mia express. Only the mail, baggage and express and smoking cars were de- stroyed. The coach following the smoker was badly splintered. There was not more than a dozen passengers on the fast mail, all in one coach, and while none of them were seriously in- jured, the shaking up was terrible Every seat in the coach was torn from the floor and many of the floor blanks came up with the seats. One man, John Sweeney was thrown over the seat and through window. but escaped with only scratches and bruises.
 1t is stated that the wreck was caused by a miscarriage Of orders from the trainmaster. At Emporia the eastbound fast mail train received orders to pass the California express at Laud,. seven