The islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1891-1899, 1897-09-16
HEAD END COLLISION.
Zen Killed and Several Injured I'm q
Train Wreck In Kansas.

fast mail train going east, and the
Mexico and California express, west
bound, collided, head on. The list of
the dead as far as known at midnight, is:
James Brennan, engineer, of Topeka.
Nate HOLSTER, fireman. of Topeka.
William Frisbie, engineer.
=. Gonzales, fireman.
). +. Saurs, express messenger, of
Kansas City.
R. A. Doran, postal clerk, of EN-
poria. died at II P. M.
=. Shurley, fireman.
DAME! McKennon, of Kansas City.
Unknown man, tramp.
The dead were brought to Emporia.
At midnight special train left EN-
poria bearing II injured to Topeka,
where they will be cared for in the
hospital.
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 exploded and tore hole in the
ground so deep that the smoking car of
the west bound train went in on top of
the three engines and two wrecked
mail cars, and balanced there without
turning over.
The passengers in the smoking car
escaped through the windows. The
front end of this Car was enveloped in
volume of sitting smoke and steam,
belching up from the wreck below, and
the rear door was jammed tight in the
wreck of the car behind. The wreck
caught fire from the engines. The cars
behind the smoking car burned to ashes
in short time.
In climbing from the smoking car,
several men fell through the riffs in
the wreck below, and it is impossible
to tell whether they escaped or were
burned to death.
The west bound train carried eight
coaches, and its passengers included
many excursionists, who had been to
hear Hon. w. j. Bryan speak at the
county fair at Burlingame. Mr.. Bryan
himself was on the train, but was rid
ing in the rear Pullman, some 400 feet
from the cars which were wrecked. He
states that nothing but heavy jolt was
experienced by the passengers in his
coach.
Mr.. Bryan was one of the leaders 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
manned, called to Mr.. Bryan and said:
81 went to hear you today; l am dy-
ing now, and want to shake your hand
and say God bless you. If you possibly
can, Mr.. Bryan, get me drink OF wa
| ter"
Mr.. Bryan went into the fast mail
car, one end of which was burning, and
came out with drink of water, which
he gave to the suffering passenger. He
brought out cushions for others of the
injured, and was everywhere present
to minister to the wants of the suffer
ing.
The two trains are the fastest on the
Santa Fe system, and the west-bound
train must have been running It least
10 miles an hour. The west-bound ex-
press was going around slight curve
and met the fast mail, probably within
900 feet.
OF the seven or eight cars making
up the Mexico and California express,
only the mail, baggage and express and
smoking cars were destroyed. The
coach following the smoker was badly
splintered.
There were not more than dozen
passengers on the mail train, all in one
coach, and while none of them were
seriously injured, their shaking up was
terrible. Every seat in the coach was
torn from the floor, and many OF the
floor planks came up with the seats.
One man, John Sweeney, was thrown
over three seats and through window,
but escaped with only scratches and
bruises.
The other cars of the fast mail train,
a baggage and an express, were totally
wrecked.
1t is stated the wreck was caused by
a miscarriage of orders from the train
master. At Emporia, the east-bound
fast mail train received orders to pass
the California express at Lang. seven
miles east. An order was sent to Lang
for the California express to take the
siding there, but this order was not
delivered, and the west-bound train
passed on, the trainmen expecting to
pass the fast mail at Emporia.
Six Lives Were Lost.