The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-10-17

coincidence which brought two man
killers together in the recent wreck at
Newcastle In railroad phraseology a
mankilIer" is understood to mean an
engine under an evil spell which is
constantly killing people, usually
prakemen and engine men. sometimes
traHps and persons at crossings. occa-
sionally passengers.
Colorado Midland engine % and Rio
Grande engine SOC. which met in the
Newcastle wreck, had regulations as
mankiliers. Their bloody careers are
over now, for both were demolished be-
yend possible repair This, according
10 popular belief breaks the veil spell,
SO that both roads may now confidently
look forward to long immunity from
accident.
Most railroad men are mora or less
suIlersuuous- They cherish beliefs pc
cuiar TO their calling. Some of these
superstltions are supported hy an array
OF facts that seem convincing.
Take for example the belief that bad
luck viii always follow an engine that
IS taken out of the shop on a Friday.
TAFT the mankillerS in the country are
engines that have been taken out Of the
shop on a Friday. The bloody Colo
fado Midland engine No % was taken
out on its first run on a Friday. It
was soon so badly broken up in a
wreck that it had to be sent back to
the Shop. When the repairs were COM
pieted IL Was a second time sent out on
Friday Many an engineer would
rather lose his position than to take an
engine out on a Friday. And many a
master mechanic would never think
OF asking man to take an engine on
that unlucky day.
GREATEST EVIL OF ALL.
Only one evil greater than to he
started out on a Friday could possibly
befan an engine, 50 old railroad men
say. This IS TO have a black cat run
across The track in front of it OF
course this is an evil which cannot be
foreseen or guarded against. It can
only be passiYely accepted as an omen
OF direct import. The only thing for an
engineer to do under such circum-
stances is to get right down and refuse
TO 50 further or to make arrangements
for his wife to collect his life insurance.
There are other omens OF impending
disaster II q yellow dog should bark
at a train passing over the road the
doom of that train is sealed. 1t will
never reach the end of the run without
some on board being killed. This ami
mails gift Of foreseeing railroad disas-
ters is explained by the belief that the
CUUAS VI UIdACIuCu are sent alter USdIu
TO 1nhabit yellow dogs They retain an
interest in the welfare of their former
companions and do all they can to
warn them of approaching death.
Again, if the bell should toll in pass
ing a graveyard, death Is at hand for
some of the CREW. The number of
doomed is frTiiE-ated bY the gl1lrrlfaal- of
taps on the bell
But to return TO the bloody %. Re
member that the % was sent ON its first
trip ON a Friday, read its horrible rec
ord, then deciGa whether or not there
is anything in this particular super
stition.
No %. d ten-Wileel passenger engine.
was first put in service i'm June, 1897, on
Ikle division between Colorado CITY and
LeadyilIe. Soon afterwards it was
transferred to the western division
The first Indication that bhe engine
was under an evil spell was given soon
after the transfer to tlle western diTd-
sion. One day the 90 in charge of
William Conerty, har orders to meet a
freight at TllomaSUalle- The freight
reached the meeting point a little late.
a brakeman was sent ahead to flag
the approaching passenger train
For some reason the brakeman failed
TO give the right signal. The result was
THAT the % ran into the freight. Five
trarapS who were stealing a ride i'm
freight was carrying some boarding
cars used by bridgemen and carpenters.
Two of these were fatally injured and
half a dozen were badly hurt.
SENT OUT ON FRIDAY
The % was so badly damaged i'm its
first baptism Of blood that St had to be
sent back TO the shop. After three
months the repairs were completed A
foreman who had NO nonsense about
him" insisted on sending the engine out
as soon as 1T was ready. di5regarding
the fact that the day happened TO be
Friday The y ran without rn4Slhap for
50 long that some of the younger en-
CINE men began to think that perhaps
the evil spell had been broken
But one day i'm the fa1l OF 1891 tina p
received orders as BaSaAt to go 10 Glen
wood Springs TO set a train. Orders
were to leave Basalt after the arrival
of an excursion train from the west
When this excursion train had pulled
down the main lille, directly in front OF
the siding on which the q stood. a,
brakeman gave the signal for the un-
lucky p to come ahead The signal
was obeved- The result was that the 90
rain into a coach in, the excursion train
which was stan1ing broadEi6e toward
it The check valve on the q was
broken off, allowing, the contents of the
boiler Of the % TO escape into she coach.
Eleven persons were cooked to death
and q number were badly injured.
Three years elaDsed before the next
victim was claimed. In March, 1894,
ualiae the % was running between
Rasalt and Aspen. Fireman LaWton fell
OFF the running board while Wiping the
Jacket and was killed
In August of the same year the 90
ran into a pile Of rocks which had fallen
on the track seven miles west of Buena
Vista and was thrown from the track.
while lacking the engine back on the
track, Lee eWst. one Of the wrecking
crew, had occasion to go under the en-
zinc. The Jack broke and Lee West
was crushed so badly that he died soon
after
Again three years elapsed before the
% had another mishap- This was to
he the dreadful accident at New Castle.
3n which 16 persons were killed outright
Tbese. with the 20 lives previously
crushed oat by the Y, brought its
bloody record up to IS.
RIO GRANDES JONAH"
d. & r. c. engine 5o6. which was in
the recent Rio Grande- Midland wreck,
vas also a man killer. Several tramps
had been killed by this engine. The
goo killed an engineer and fireman May
50 1897, at CabeZa, Colo. a freight train
had gone in siding for No. to pass
ard the fiagnan left he switch open.
Dashinr around the curve at fun speed.
10 5O6 ran onto the switch and crashed
into the other train before the switch