Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1898-09-09
Grade Crossing Horror.


Eighteen Persons KILLED Outright or
Fatally Injured.
Cohoes, N. Y, Sept. GA trolley car
laden with 80 people was struck by
Delaware and Hudson train going at
full speed at a grade crossing in this
city last night, and cut in two. Ten
persons were killed outright. eight died
soon afterward froIl the effects of their
injuries. The remainder of the passen-
gers were all injured, and some of them
may die.
The cars entering the city from Ian
singburg were crowded with passengers
returning from a Labor day picnic at
Rensselaer, park, pleasure resort near
Troy. Car 1872 was the victim of the
disaster 1t came over the bridge about
1885 o'clock loaded with a merry
party. The crossing where the accident
occurred is at grade Four tracks Of
the Delaware and Hudson road. which
runs north and south at this point, cross
the two tracks of the trolley road. 1t
was the hour when the night boat special,
train which runs south and connects
with the New York city boat at Albany.
vas due to pass that point
The tracks of the street line run at n
grade from the bridge to the point where
the disaster took place. In conse-
Quence of this fact and of the frequent
passage of trains it has been the rule
for each motor-car conductor to stop his
car and go forward to observe the rail-
road tracks and signal his car to proceed
If no trains were in sight. 1t cannot
be ascertained whether that rule was
complied with on this occasion. for all
events prior to the crash are forgotten
by those who participated.
The motor car was struck directly in
the center by the engine of the train.
which was going at a high rate of speed.
The accident came without the slightest
warning The car was upon the tracks
before the train doomed in sight. and no
power on earth could save it. The mo-
torman evidently saw the train an
preaching as he reached the track and
opened the lever in vain. With a crash
that startled the people for blocks
around, the locomotive crashed into the
lighter vehicle. The motor car parted in
two. both sections being hurled into the
air in splinters. The mass of humanity.
for the car was crowded to overllowine.
was torn and margled. The force of the
collision was experienced to the greatest
degree in the front part of the car. and
every human being in that section was
killed.
The scene after the accident was a hor-
rble one. a mass of shattered beings
lay about. Bodies had been hurled into
the air, and their headless ard limbless
trunks were found in some cases for
80 feet from the crossing TIL pilot of
the engine was smashed and amid its
WreckaGe were the manned corpses of
two women. The shrieks # the wound
ed and the groans Of the dying added
to the horrors of the scene. The passer-
gers of the train suffered 10 injury other
than violent shock. The r,A.srity Of
the passengers of the trolley car were
young people. They included many wo-
men.
The accident. taking place almost with
in the heart of the city, caused the Wild
est excitement. The passengers Of the
car were mostly Cohosiers returning To-
their homes Within 10 minutes after
the collision fully one-half of the popu-
lation of the city were surging about the
vicinity in an endeavor to ascertain if
relatives or friends were among the UNI
fortunates. The injured were taken to
lHe CITY HOSplldl ana TO the Continental
knitting mill. The bloody corpses We're
picked up in boxes and placed in neigh
boring mill. Many of them were UNI
recognizable. The crash was fright
full in its results. Headless women with
gay summer dresses bathed in their own
and the blood of Others limbs without
trunks or any means of Identifying to
whom they belonged women's and men )
heads with crushed or distorted features;
bodies crushed and hattened-these con-
stituted a horrifyng spectacle.
The train Immediately after the ac-
cident proceeded to Troy. The en-
gineer stated that he did not see the
car until he was upon it. He tried to
prevent his train from striking the car
but his efforts We're frutless. He was
some minutes late and was trying 10
make up lost time. In consequence Of
the caution taken by the trolley road to
ascertain if the tracks were clear at
this crossing the engineers Of ira ms
have always felt safe in running at a
high rate of speed. The engineer thinks
chat the motOrman, when he saw the
train was upon him. tried to get beyond
the danger line, The grade of this
crossing and the speed at which his car
was going also made it impossible for
him to stop before he reached the De!a-
ware and Hudson tracks. The motor
man was killed outright.