The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1897-09-11

Conductor Burbank Tried to Steal a Sta
tion the Passenger Train-Thirty
Persons Now Believed to Have Perish
ed and 1S5 Were More or Less Injured
The Tracks Cleared.
Newcastle, COL, September 1O.-The
worst wreck in the history of the State of
Colorado occurred at 12.25 this morning
on the track of the Denver and Rio
Grande and the Colorado Midland rail-
ways, one and a half miles west of here.
After Etwelve hours incessant work the
wrecking crews have succeeded in clear
ing the debris and recovering the bodies
of those who perished. From the best in
formation obtainable now fully thirty
persons are believed to have perished,
while 1856 have been taken out of the
wreck suffering from serious injuries. i
The wreck was caused by head on
collision between Denver and Rio Grande
passenger trains running at the rate of
forty miles an hour and special Colorado
Midland stock train running at speed
of probably thirty miles. $50 terrific
was the collision that both en-
gines, the baggage and express cars,
smoker and day coach and two stock
cars were totally demolished and the
track torn up for several rods in both
directions. 10 add to the horror of the
scene the wreck caught fire from the ex-
plosion of tank on the passenger train
and burned SO rapidly that many passen-
gers pinned beneath the debris was
burned to death before help could reach
them.
The most generally accepted theory of
the cause of the wreck seems to be that
Conductor Burbank of the midland spec
ial, anticipating the time of ths passen-
ger train, undertook to steal station
and beat the passenger into Newcastle
Burbank escaped uninjured and upon
orders from Coroner Clark has been
placed under arrest by the sheriff.
The trains collided on curve around
mountain and there was no opportunity
to avoid the wreck or even SO slacken
speed.
Both passenger and freight trains were
going at full speed, about twenty miles
an hour for the passenger, and ten or
twelve for the freight.
The Rio Grande Junction road on
which the wreck occurred, is a joint
track operated by the Denver and Rio
Grande and Colorado Midland companies.
1t is a single standard gauge track,
seyenty-seve miles long running from
New Castle to Grand Junction, connect
ing the two roads with the Rio Grande
Western. About the road west of the
Grand River and nearly all the way are
high bluffs on one side of the track, and
the stream on the other, it being from
twelve to twenty feet below the surface
of the track.
The Rio Grande passenger train was
due at New Castle at 1i.05 p. NJ, and
| n1116 hoxy v.oan hnl @ha ,iv1t
half miles beyond New Castle, where the
accident occurred by lilo.
The train must, therefore, have been at
least one hour late as the accident oc-
CURED at 10. Is a. m.
One report as to the cause of tho acci-
dent is to the effect that Conductor Bur-
bank, of the Colorado Midland stock
train, made mistake of ten minutes on
figuring the time in which the Rio
Grande passenger train passed New Castle
and that, therefore, he was chiefly re-
sponsible for the disaster.
Engineer Ostrander, of the stock train,
could neither confirm or deny this report
If he were alive. 1t is believed he is un-
der the debris.
r. w. l.. Horthorne, conductor of the
passenger train, was in the smoking car,
at the time of the collision, and was
thrown about and severely bruised. He
says that the gas cylinder under one of
| the wrecked cars exploded and everything
appeared to be in flames within short
time. He does not think more than two
or three passengers in the smoker escaped
being burned to death.
The passengers in one day coach Jared
the worst. Out of twenty nine p eople in
the coach, only six are now known to
have escaped. All was confusion and
some may have escaped uunoticed.
AS in all similar accidents, the engine
men are the first tO 1oce their lives EOOi-
neer Ostrander went down with his hands
on the lever. Robert Halland, fireman on
the passenger, was SO badly hurt that he
died at five O'Clock. Engineer Gordon of
the passenger, may live, although he is
badly injured and at first was thought to
be fatally hurt. He suffered great pain
from rupture in addition to his other
injuries. He was thrown over a barbed
wire fence by the force of the collision.
Hines, the Midland fireman, was SO badly
hurt that the doctors who examined him
at O'Clock said that he could not re-
cover; He was shockingly burned, but
bore his pain bravely. a., James keenan,,
the postal clerk, could not live until noon
the doctors said. He was terribly scalded.
Two express messengers on the Rio
sirande train saved their lives, but their
escape was thrilling one. They We're
James G. Foley and William S. Mes
senger, both of Denver.
They had piled up the through baggage
in one end Of the car and were busy with
egg cases in the other and when the shock
came they were pitched headlong about
the car and when it toppled over they
were stunned and bruised by the loose
baggage. 1t was several minutes before
they were able to aid themselves. Then
the car commenced to fill with smoke,
and death by burning or suffooation
seemed their fate. They realized their
position and began to battle with an axe