Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-10-25
20 LIVES LOST.
CONTINUED from page ~

The closing scene Of the first day OF
this tragedy Is drawn around a COM
mon car that stands near the scene OF
the accident where nearly a score OF
badly mutilated bodies, none Of them
yet claimed by friends. are lying in q
long row, gruesome evidences Of a dis
aster, the greatest that has ever &C.
Cured on this railroad.
| The wrecked train was known as the
State express. 1t left Buffalo at
O'Clock, last night, and was due In New
York at T. this morning. The train was
bauled by engine S72, and consisted OF
one American Express car, one compo-
site baggage and smoking car, one day
coach and six sleepers. This was the
makeup Of the train when 1t left
| Poughkeepsie, the last stopping place
before the disaster, at SIS A. M.
AT this time there was in the smoker,
| in addition to the baggage man, Her.
| man Acker Of Peekskill, who was in
his compartment, 8 Cinnamon, en- route
from the Canadian border to New
York, and a middle-aged man. suppos-
ed to be Thomas Riley Of 1850 Wiscon-
sin avenue, st. Louis. All of these
excepting the baggage master perished
The day coach contained IS or 20 pas
sengers, many Of whom were women
and children.
How many of these escaped is not
known, but at least IL were drowned or
killed in the car. Behind the coach
were the 6 sleepers. the Glenpine, with
Is passengers, the Hermes with ~ the
Niobe with II, the Diana with about
Is. Anita, nearly full, and Racket River
with no passengers. The total cargo
Of human freight consisted of some
thing over 100 people.
At Fishkill the train lessened its
speed, as 1t is customary to run from
that point to Terrytown at the rate of
about 25 miles an hour. Most of the
passengers were asleep, those in the
sleepers being in their births while the
occupants Of the coach and smoker
were of the most part doubled up in
their seats.
Just how the train met its awful fate
will never be fully known, for the men
who first felt the shock. Engineer John
Foyle and Fireman John Tompkins,
tonight lie dead in the cab of their To-
connective at the bottom of Hudson
river.
One of the trainmen who survived the
disaster made it his first duty to run
to the nearest signal tower to signal
for help. The place where the wreck
occurred is rather isolated. 1t is just
at the entrance to what is known as
Kings cut. miles south of Garrisons
and miles north of Peekskill
Two other express trains were fol-
lowing close behind the Inflated state
express and the engine of one Of them
was sent to Garrison's 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 railroad At
the scene. reaching there at 80. The
engine which brought him there re-
turned to Cold Spring and brough.
back Drs Winslow, Fillebrown and
Murdoch. In the meantime Drs.
Charles and Percy Mason, 1nuen.
Sowden and Lynn had arrived and all
the doctors were soon at work among
the injured.
OF the dramatic horror of the Situa-
ton in the combination car when it
left the track and struck the water.
perhaps the best account is to be had
from the story of Hermann Acker OF
Peekskill, the baggageman. Acker
was suffering from the shock when
seen. but the scenes he graphically de-
scribed. He said:
John Shaw, agent for the Westcott
Express Co., and myself were in the
compartment, when suddenly there |
was a terrible bump and then rush |
of water that forced us toward the |
roof of the car. The car seemed to |
turn completely over and had filled |
with water to within about a foot of |
the top. When we struck, the car
whirled completely around, the end
which the Chinese occupied being un-
der water, while our end was tilted up.
We swan around and got ventilatOr
open and, noting the situation, got an
axe from a tool box which was af1oat.
and smashed panel in the end of the
car. We crawled through the hole TO
the roof of the car and rowboat came
out and took US ashore"