The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-05-14
WAS KILLED IN HIS CAB.
ENGINEER BELLS HEAD CRUSHED
BY \ WATER TANK PIPE.

He Was Pulling Train No. % From
CoIumbin to Savannah on the Flor
ida Central and PeninsuIar-Lean-
ing His Head From the Cab Win
dow and Looking Back at His
Train. He Was struck by the Pipe
of Water Tank and Died with
out n Word-EIis Fireman Ran the
Engine to the Next stop and Motif
fed the ConductOr-BeII Was Prob
ably the Veteran of the +. c. a
P.'S Engineers.
After Drawing the dangers of the track
on the darkest and most stormy nights,
nights when in the very air there is warn
ing of the peril that may lie in front of
the engine far or near up the track that
the headlight illumines dimly and indis-
tinctly. and passing safely for ten years
through the risks men of his profession
have 10 run, Fred W. Bell fell victim
TO his own carelessness early yesterday
morning. His head crashed against the
cannon of a water tank as his engine
sped by, and death was instantaneous.
Ed Washington was Engineer Bells fire
man on the run from Columbia TO Sa-
vannah on the Florida Central and PENN
eular. Bell was pulling passenger train
No. So, due to arrive at Savannah at 5
O'Clock When It arrived it brought the
corpse Of the man whose strong hand was
at the throttle for many miles Of the run
down from Columbia.
About half mile beyond Stillwell. in
ri fF.U4H trail
and Peninsular, there is a water tank. The
usual contrVance of an iron pipe. or can
non," as railroad men call 1t, and canvas
bag fitting over it, enables the engineer
10 fill his tender. 1t Is claimed the canlr~ I
does not project farther from the tank
than it should. and that it was due to
Bells own carelessness that his head
struck it.
Washington did not know when the en-
gincer was killed. He saw him sitting on
his box some moments after the accident,
but thought nothing was wrong When
the engineer did not attend to some duty
that was customary at just that point
OF the run the fireman thought he must
he sleeping and went over to him. He
found him dead.
The fireman took charge of the engine
aud ran it to Rincou, distance of sever
al miles, before giving the alarm. There
he notified the conductor, who himself
brought the engine in TO the city.
Washington was placed under arrest by
the conductor, who thought it well to
hold him until an investigation could be
made of the manner in which the engineer
had met his death The fireman was taken
TO the coroner, who ordered his release as
soon as he had heard his story.
The body of the engineer was taken to
his boarding place on Liberty street Last
night it was sent to Augusta, Mr.. Bel s
former home, where the interment will
take place The unfortunate man leaves
wife to mourn his death. He was one
of the most valued of the railroads en-
gineers. 1t Is said he had been longer in
the employ of the Florida Central and
Peninsular than any other engineer. He
was thirty-siX years Old.
During the morning train left for the
scene OF the accident with Mr.. Williamson,
train master of this division, and Coroner
Goette on board. They went to investigate
the manner of the engineers death The
train stopped at the tank, where It was
easily seen that one leaning far out from
the cab of an engine would be in danger.
II was surmised from the wound. which
was IN the back of the head, crushing the
skull, that the engineer had been looking
back at his train.