Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1899-08-10
FIFTY PEOPLE ARE killed.
Trolley Party Meets a Fright
full Slaghter in a Runaway
Car at Stratford, Conn.
CAR JUMPS HIGH BRIDGE
Two of the Most Horrifying Acct.
dents of the Year Happen to
Excursion Parties.

Wrecked Car-NIany Others Badly
Injured-TwO Hundred Thrown
Into Deep Water by Breaking of
Gang Plank Twenty Drowned.
StratfOrd, Conn, Aug. S.-Thirty pas
sengers were killed and dozen in
jured near here, by trolley car plung-
ing over trestle fifty feet high.
The line had just been opened for
travel. and evidently the car was not
under control. as ii approached the
trestlc at high rate of speed. The
wheels left the tracks Immediately ana
bumped along the lies. then the car
plunged over The side. the trestle not
being protected by guard rails.
In its fiigh, of fifty feet To the mud
flats below the car turned completely
over. As ii struck the ground me huge
four-ton motor was torn from its fas-
Jennings and broke through the floor OF
the ear, crushing many passengers 10
death against the roof. which was I'M
bedded deeply in the mud.
Five minutes before that the pas
sengers Oh the crowded ear. delighted
with their first opportunity of seeing
the beauties of the lIousatonic River
on such a lovely day. were laughing
aud singing. When found by men who
hurried to their assistance they were
simply jammed into Il human mass be-
meath the great motor.
There was only one eyewitness to the
scene. That was II young woman who
had noticed the unusual speed of the
car. When il topp!cd over the trestle
and the shriolis OF the passengers rang
i'm her cars. she could bear no more
and tainted.
The exact number of passengers on
the Inflated car is not known. Almost
immediately after the accident. and
while men We're trying to rescue the
living and eXtricate the dead. some
employc of the read took away the
register of passengers and secreted it..
Broken Gangplank browns Twenty.
Bar Harbor. Me-. Aug. S.-While en-
deavoring 10 crowd upon ferryboat
at Mount Desert more than twenty
persons were drowned and five times
that number were pulled from the
water in time To escape death. The
victims were all eXcurSioniStS. en-
deavoring to reath Bar Harbor to get IL
view of the fleet. which was expected
here.
The point of the accident is eight
miles from this place and is the ter
minus of Il division of the Maine Cen
tral Railroad. in whose charge the eX-
cursioniSts We're at the time of the ac-
cdent The crowd of 300 We're thrown
into the water by the breaking of
gangplank.
They had little more chance than if
they had been thrown into Il well. and
that the death list is not hundred in
stead of twenty is Il miracle to all who
saw the accident.
The freight hous" at Mount Desert
has been turned into Il morgue. Twen-
ty identified dead are in it. and bow
many more there are whose bodies
have not been recovered is not known.
as there was "A strong ebb tidc run
ming nj the time. and many are he
lieved to have been carried ont to sea.
The accident indirectly was the re-
suit of the over-anx iousness of The ey
cursionists to see the fleet. The Maine
Central early iii lie week advertised
excursions to Bar llarbor. The Cen
trail runs as far as Mount Destet. and
at that point thc travellers are sent to
Bar Harhor by the ferry. 1t is an
eight mile sail. The distance from the
terminus of the road to the ferry is
only few steps. and ii was IN these
few feet that the score were drowned
and some thirty injured. 1t is thought
that of the injured about fifteen will
die and some of the others will he dis
abled for life.