Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1897-10-30
TRAIN RAN INTO THE HUDSON
SLEEPING MEN ARE DROWNED
Apparently Solid EmbnnI<ment on
the New York Central Gave Away
-THenty-Eight Souls Hurled Into
the Unknown,

Garrisons, n. Y, Oct. %. - From the
sleep that means refreshment and rest to
the eternal sleep that knows no awaken
ing, plunged i'll the twinkling of an eye
this morning % souls, men, women and
children. In the Shiny bed of the Hud-
son river a train laden with slumbering
humanity plowed, drawing through the
waters the passengers. There was moth
ing to presage the terrible accident which
SO suddenly deprived these unfortunates
of life.
The New York Central train left But
talo Saturday night and had progressed
for nearly nine-tenths of the distance to-
ward Its destination. The engineer and
his fireman had just noted the gray dawn
breaking from the east and the light
streak of red denoting the suns appear
ance when the great engine plunged into
the depths of the river Neither engineer
nor fireman will ever tell the story of that
terrible moment With either hand upon
the throttle the engineer plunged with
his engine to the river bottom. The fire
man, too, was at his post. Behind them
came the express car, the combination
car and the sleepers, and these piled on
to of the engine.
1t is known that it was a trife foggv
and that the track was not visible. but if
there was any break in the lines of steel
1t must have been of a very recent hap
pening, for only an hour before there had
passed over it heavy passenger train, lad
en- with human freight. Neither is an ex-
PLANTATION ready. All is conjecture.
Retaining Wall Gave WAY.
The section OF road was supposed to be
the very best on the entire division There
was great heavy retaining wall all
along the bank, and while the tide was
high yesterday it was not unprecedented.
What seems to have happened was that
underneath the track and ties the heavy
wall had given away for when the great
weight of the engine struck the unsup-
ported tracks, it went crashing through
the rest of the wall and toppled over into
the river.
Then there happened what on a railroad
at any other time would have caused dis
aster but what now proved a blessing. As
the train plunged over the embankment
the coupling pin that held the last three
of the six sleepers broke and they miracu-
lousy remained on the broken track. In
that way some 60 lives were saved. Of
eye-Witnesses there were none except the
crew of a tugboat passing with tow.
They saw the train with its lights as it
came flashing about the curves, and then
saw the greater part of it 60 into the
river Some of the cars, with closed Win
dows, foated, and the tug, whistling for
help, started TO the rescue. A porter
Jumped from one of the cars that remain
ed on the track and ran into the yard OF
Augustus Cars house, near which the
accident occurred and stood screaming
for help and moaning, "The train is in the
river All our passengers are drowned
In few minutes Carr dressed himself
and gettinGFa boat rowed with the porter
to the scene. As they turned point In
the bank they came upon the express car
and the combination car floating about 20
feet from the shore, but sinking every
minute. One man was taken from the
top of the car and efforts made to save
those inside. A few were gotten out, the
passengers left upon the track, making
human bridge to the shore to take the
wounded on.
other Cars Sank.
The dav coach and smoker had gone
down in the deep water and rescue was
impossible In the latter coach the eondi-
ton must have been horrible. The car
turned completely over and the passenger
end of it was deep in the water, While the
baggage end stood up toward the sur
face. The men in that lower end must
have fought like tiends for bret PERIOD
for the bodies, when taken out, were
mass of wounds The closing scene OF the
first dav of this tragedy is drawn around
a common car near the scene OF the accl
dent. where nearly score OF badly mutl-
lated bodies. none of them yet claimed by
friends, are lying in row, gruesome eVl-
dences of the disaster, the greatest thaC
has ever occurred on this railroad.