Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1897-01-09

sengers. This story, however. has not
yet been corroborated, but other facts
tend 70 show that 1t was the work OF
train wreckers.
An examination of the engine shows
that Engineer White had shut or the
steam and reversed before II went
down, indicating that ne saw danger
ahead as he approached the bridge and
tried to stop his train. His charred
body was found with his hand on the
throttle. The officers say tina there IL
every indication hat a rail was removed
which derailed the train and caused *
TO pull down the bridge. The cross ties
show marks OF the wheels. To add to
this IL the fact that three men tried TO
wreck a Southern railway train about
fifteen miles east of here five days ago
by removing a rail on a trestle ninety
feet high. The fast express left the
track, nj the engineer, by superhuman
efforts, stopped 1t before It tore down
the structure. In this case three men
were seen running from the place, and
a crowbar, with which the spikes had
been withdrawn, was found. The scenes
OF both accidents are in a wild, noun
famous country.
Wrecked Train Burned.
Louisville, KY, Dec. 29.-Reports to SUI
p~erintendent of transportation George
Evans of the Louisville and Nashville
railway, indicate that the fatalities in yes
terday's disaster near Birmingham. Ala,
will number twenty-five. Or the total
number of persons, crew and passengers,
on the train, but seven escaped. and the
80 - --n, r.. n afarttra
for no one knows exactly how many peo-
pie there were on the train. The fact that
the train was destroyed by fire almost
Immediately after the accident and before
wrecking trains could reach the scene.
also adds 10 the uncertainty on this point.
as many bodies were burned beyond
recognition and some may have been to-
tally destroyed.
The train was a small local passenger
which. starting from Birmingham at .
a. m, runs to a point near Quincy. then
goes over a connecting line of track con-
trolled by the Southern railway and
known as the Brierfie.d, Blocton and Biz
mingham road. The train returns to
the Louisville and Nashville at Blocton
and makes the round trip TO Birmingham,
after a circuit touching numerous mining
towns I'm that region. Quincy
hiNd ttlS ieNhs A"~
river, an unimportant stream which. ex-
cept in time Of heavy rains. is quite shall
low. The bridge was about ninety feet
high with a 200-foot span In the middle and
approaches 300 feet long. Into the bed
OF the Kahaba the unfortunate passen-
gers and crew were plunged. That anyone
| escaped with their life Is little short of
miraculous. Almost Immediately the
train, which consisted OF an engine. a
combination baggage and express and two
coaches. took fire, increasing the horror or
the calamity. That any lives were saved
is probably due TO the fact that the crash
was heard by the telegraph operator at
Hargo. three miles from the river. lie
reported this 10 the train dispatcher
about S:l3 O'Clock and half an hour later
the news that the train had gone down
was carried TO Blocton, 81 xmiles away
by a native who also heard the noise. A
relief train, bearing all the physicians OF
Blocton and about fifty citizens, were
made up hurrIedly and sent to the scene
of the wreck, closely followed by others
from Birmingham and Bessemer.
Revised Dead List.
Birmingham, Ala, Dec. 2S.-The latest
revised list of the dead and wounded In
the wreck is:
Inc Killed.
James Bowling. expressman. Guthrie.
Ky.
II. Webb, Birmingham.
Frank White. engineer, Birmingham.
Bruce Phillips. Blocton.
l.. w. Martin, Brookwood, Ala
Mrs. Henry Hanberry and two children,
Birmingham.
A. Pionnell. conductor. Birmingham.
George Carney, Birmingham.
X, III. Blount, colored. minister, Birm-
ingham.
Miss Ida Powers, Blocton.
ID. j. Powers, Blocton.
Mrs. Emma Powers and two children,
Blocton,
Mrs. r. Little, Blocton.
~. Gardener, Blocton.
Miss Emma Gardener, Blocton.
Mrs. Mary Gardener, Blocton.
The Injured
Henry Hanberry. Birmingham. seriously
injured.
+. Echols, Helena, Ark. slightly.
Will Gardener, Blocton, slightly.
Stark Stewart colored. Bioeton. slightly.
Miss Booth. Blocton, fatally.
Mrs. Powell, Blocton, slightly.
Mrs. Powell's child, Blocton.
Mrs. Walker and three children, Bloc
ton slightly.
The relief train from the scene OF the
wreck reached Birmingham at 8 O'Clock,
bringing ten corpses and three injured
persons. Ten other dead bodies were left
at Blocton, where the deceased resided,
and one at Brookwood.