The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-12-03
A PREMIER VERDICT.
Jlry's Finding in the
Meadow Horror
Inquest.
EMPLOYEES STARTLING EVIDENCE
They Declare That No One
Was Sent Out to Warn
Them of Danger.
EMPLOYEES STARTLING EVIDENCE

~'AfS+Ne~~>
Lawless one of the laborers who was
killed by the Milestone local on the morn
ing of November IS while he was working
on the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks on
the Meadows near the Hackensack River
was held last night in the Grand Jury
room of the Hudson County Court House.
Il was conducted by Coroner William De-
laney.
rhe evidence was all in before eleven
o'clock, but the jury did not render YER
dict until long after midnight.
The verdict reached was as follows
1--WE. the jury, find that Michael Lawless
came to his death on November is because
of neglect on the part of one or more
employees of the Pennsylvania Railroad
Company.
The first witness called was John Van
Nostrand, of No. % Clifford street, New
ark, engineer of the train that killed the
men. He said that his train is known as
the Milestone local On the morning of
November Is it was running on time. 1T
left Newark at S07 o'clock and was due
in Jersey City at $50 o'clock. The tragedy
occurred at about S.l3 O'clock 1t was a
damp, disagreeable day, but there was no
fog. He could see a mile in either dlrec-
ton until just previous to the accident,
when a heavy pail of smoke and steam
settled in front of his engine and OBJ
scured his view of objects ahead. The
smoke and steam came from the engine
of a freight train that was running be-
side his train at almost the same speed
The engine of the freight was slightly
ahead of his engine. After he passed
signal 24 Van Nostrand shut off steam on
his locomotive, fearing thatsin the smoke
and steam he would not be able to see
the signals of the Hackensaek draWpridse
which he was nearing, He had Just smut
off steam and the train was going al
reduced speed, preparatory to coming 10
a stop, when his fireman SAID, John' we
have struck a man.
Almost as he spoke" said Van Nos
trand, Il saw that we We're in group
of men. l did not see the men before
we were upon them. as the steam anu
smoke obscured my view. Even when We
struck them could not see them clearly.
All / could see was the dim form OF one
man as he was hurled high in the air
and the body of another that was thrown
to the right side of the engine. The flsst
man who was struck was on the fireman's
side of the engine. The first man struck
was not a rail length from the others.
Phe-~iirenlasn q. s.. Mason. was ringing
the bell at the time the accident occurred.
l am sure that there was no fog that
morning There was a drizziing rain
and the smoke settled over the track. 1t
was below the automatic signals fer
could see them all along the road very
distinctly
In answer to questions by Coroner Del
aney Mr. Van Nostrand said that his
train was travelling at the rate Of about
50 miles an hour, which is schedule time,
when it struck the men. He said It IS a
common thing to meet with clouds of
smoke. but that they are not always as
dense as that one was That morning
the wind was from the west and drove the
smoke and steam ahead of his engine.
which was going east.
When the witness was through with
MS direct examination Rodger Foster, a
New York lawyer, who represents the
families of two Of the men who were
killed. was permitted by Colonel Delaney
to ask questions. He ELECTED no further
information.
John A. Nugent. official stenograpner OF
the Hudson County Courts who was a
passenger on the train which killed the
the finding of the dead and mansled bod
les beside the tracks.
The conductor left the car as soon as
the train stopped, continued Mr.. Nugent.
In short time the signal was given
and the train started to back slowly. As
the train backed passenger said,
There's man killed. and There's an
other, called someone else My God.s
cried third, there's another ] got out
of the east end of the car and at the
bottom of the embanlSment where the
filling meets the meadows, I saw three
bodies After that saw body after
body until I had counted nine dead
bodies. I saw several of the passengers
carry the dead and wounded into the train
and then l returned to my seat | noted
that at the time the train stopped there
was heavy mist about the train. whether
fog or smoke | could not say. Just be-
fore our train stopped noticed that there
was q train unnfng alongside of us, the
same way We were going. 1t interfered
with my reading and that is why I
noticed IT,
William Quirk, of No. 1872 Steuben