The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1899-05-18
NO SIGNAL OUT
Lack of Proper Warning Caused
the Frightful Wreck on the
Reading.
Crowded Special Crashed Into the
Rear Of a Regular Express
Train,
Causing Death to Nearly Thirty
!; and Serious Injury to Many
Others.
Thirteen Prominent Citizens of
Norristown Among the
Dead.

READING, Pa, May 15.-Dayl1ght re-
vealed the accident at Exeter, in which
an excursion train ran into the regular
express, as one of the most disastrous in
the history of the company. The num-
Der of killed is at least %.
Many of the dead have not yet been
identified and they now lie at the
morgue awaiting the arrival of relatives
or friends to make the Identification.
The signal man should have displayed
the red and green danger signal for the
special, but it is said that he failed to do
this, whether on account of the signal
failing to work or not is not known.
While the express was standing on the
tracks the crowded special came thun-
dering along. On account of curve the
engineer of the special could not see the
train standing on the tracks ahead of
him until too late, The special tore into
the express with crash, and shrieks of
agony soon filled the air. The railroad
at the scene of the accident runs over a
hollow, and the embankment on which
the tracks are is about 30 feet high,
Several passengers were hurled to the
bottom of the embankment, but the cars
all remained on the roadbed. The dead
and wounded were strewn in heaps in
the debris Of the two cars. Little dam
age, howeves was done to the rest of
the trains.
Most of the injured were brought to
Reading, but many were sent to Norris
town and Pottstown, and some were
taken to Philadelphia.
General E. Burd Grubb of New Jer-
sey, ex- United States minister to Greece,
and United States Senator Boies Penrose
of Philadelphia, were among the pas
sengers in the Pullman car on the first
train. Both were badly shaken up, but
neither sustained any injury.
Disregarded Signals.
The rear coach of the first section, in
which most of the killed were riding
was full of people, every seat being
occupied. Some Of them heard the loud
whistling of the approaching engine Of
the second section, and there was an
attempt on the part of many to escape
from the car, but in second all was
confusion and death. 1t was stated that
10 minutes after the regular train left
the station here the second. section or
special followed. After the special had
left it was learned that coal train
which was running ahead to Monocaey,
had not ytst cleared the main track, and
the train dispatcher here decided to
send precautionary order to the ex-
press train conductor, and the operator
at that place was so notified. He
Immediately put up the "orders" sig
nal. But it appears that just as the ex-
press came along the coal train had
cleared. The express ran some distance
by the station, and meantime the tower
operator just below Reading was mott
fed to display precautionary signals
the second section. Whether they were
observed by the engineer is not known.
At.all events the train proceeded, and
when it rounded the curve. just north
of Exeter station. the red signals of the
rear car of the regular express loomed
up before the engineer. He was making
rapid time, probably 40 miles an hour.
It lis evident from the speed of the Sec
ond train that the engineer did not ex-
pect to find the first section there.