The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1897-07-01

render assistance did all that was possible
1t was from six to ten feet deep and the
current was very swift"
John Ennis, a Kansas City travelling
salesman, was in the rear of the car which
was the only one to escape injury. 1t was
likewise the only car in which none of the
passengers were injured. Mr.. Ennis had
an interview with a farmer who had come
from Missouri City in the evening and
was at the place when the wreck occurred
He claimed to have waved flag on the
train, but. owing to the terrific rain thu
engineer was unable to see the signal. Mr.
Ennis said the wreck occurred at 1:05
The engine passed over the trestle, which
broke Immediately afterwards. and the
tender together with the through smoking
car was thrown backward into the gorge
The farmer with whom Mr.. Ennis talked
said that at o'clock there was no water
in the gorge, but at the time of the wreck
it was raging torrent of ten feet or more
in depth. The farmer said the bridge was
clearly unsafe, and that fact impelled him
to stand in the storm in an attempt to flag
the train. There were no trainmen left
unkilled on the side of the gorge on which
the most cars were left, so far as Mr.. En-
mis- knows, the engineer and fireman be-
ing on the other side. The passengers
were left to take independent action in
One of the most important things, and
one which secured the safety of the re-
naming passengers, was the tagging of
a freight train which followed the passen-
ger train about ten minutes. The freight
train was tagged by passengers 300 feet
from the wreck. Mr.. Ennis said a passen-
ger in the train estimated that there were
at least forty passengers in the smoking
car and not more than ten were rescued
on this side of the gorge. Most of the
smoking car passengers, If they were
saved. were found on the other side. 1t
was generally believed that very many of
the passengers of the smoker had been
killed. but no one could give an estimate
of the number.
The conductor was in the smoking car
at the time of the wreck and is believed
to have been killed.
Mr.. Ennis thought twenty conserva-
tive estimate of the number killed and
that it was more likely more than less
that number. The mail clerk and express
messenger, he thought, were undoubtedly
killed.
Edwin Zea of Kansas City and c.. W.
Harbold. q, travelling salesman, were the
men who tagged the approaching freight
train. Both men agreed measurably
with Mr.. Ennis in their accounts of the
wreck and estimates of the number
killed.
On arriving ut the depot in this city,
both took luncheon at the depot stand
and neither seemed to take any credit
for having saved their fellow passengers
from the catastrophe of double wreck.
in which many must have been killed
but for the forethought of these two men.
Both said they did not see a trainman
after the wreck and were of the opinion
that all except the engineer, fireman and
Pullman conductor were killed. The
freight train, they said was about ten
minutes behind. Neither Mr.. Iea nor
Mr. Harbold would venture an estimate
on the loss of life, which both agreed
would probably be nearly as great as Mr.
Ennis had stated.
Lee w. Campbell of Kansas City was
in the rear car. He said: -,
"We hardly felt the shock. L should
think there were at least ten or twenty
killed, from the reports l have had from
the passengers on the other cars. Inc
baggage master and mail agent were I'M
loubtedly killed. The mail, baggage car
and smoker are down in the water on
the other side of the gorge. | think the
gorge was about fifteen feet from the top
Of the trestle. On this side of the gorge
the sleeper. which was behind the chair
car. ran under it, and the Excelsior
Springs. or second smoker, is over the
chair car
1.-THE front of the second smoker is
broken in two and people in that car
y, Une iniured, I heard a passenger who
passed through the chair car early IN the
evening say that after the. wreck 1t was
filed with travelling men, -,
III. III. Dillon, a Topeka attorney, WIN
his wife and son and servant, were III
the sleeper. He said no part of the sleep
ing car was under water IN the gorge.
1t was standing on end, and the passen-
gers escaped by climbing through the WIN
iows. No one in the sleeper was hurt.
Mr.. Dillon was unable to tell now many
persons were in the sleeper. but said that
estimates of five made by the other pas
sengers was too low and that there was
at least eight or nine persons.
Dennis Sullivan, United States post
office inspector, was on the EXcelsior
Springs smoker, the front end of which
was smashed up and two of the passen-
gers of which were injured. lie SAID one
Of the passengers injured was liquor
dealer of Excelsior Springs, but ne dla
not know the name of the other man.
The Excelsior Springs man succeeded IN
extricating himself from the wreck. but
Mr.. Sullivan and G. o. Bramhall of Kan
sas CITY had to take him out. He was
mined between the car stove and the side
of the car. The shock. Mr.. Sullivan said,
was sufficient to throw all the. passen-
gers of the front Excelsior Springs car
from their seats.
Miss Nellie Merrick of Carrollton. MO-,
was in the first chair car, but escaped un-
injured. Her companion, Miss Alice
Duck. also of Carrollton, was severely
bruised about the left side of the head
and arm and shoulder. Miss Merrick
said that ]. w. Smith of Brunswick was
the only man who took any part in res
cuing the ladies in the first chair car, so
far as she knew, and that he carried sew
eral of them out of the car, including her.
self and Mrs. Duck.
The wife and child of Rev. DR.. North
rup. who were passengers on the train,
escaped uninjured.
George II. Haley of Kansas City was
in the last car with his wife, and both
escaped.
ut all came so quickly, without the
slightest warming" said he, in talking
of the accident, "that it is difficult to give
n connected story of the terrible affair.
We had reached n point about a mile
this side of Missouri City when. without
a moments warning, the bridge gave
way and in moment the train was
wrecked. The engine and tender passed
over the bridge. The baggage car, the
smoker, the mail car and the chair car
went down. The sleeper was thrown
under the chair car, and the baggage car
was. thrown almost on end upon the top