The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1899-01-12
THE LEHIGH DISASTER
Fixing the Blame for Disregarding
Dispatcher's Orders.
MORE DEATHS EXPECTED,

AMY Not survive. SiNtecn EciSons ARC
Dead and Sevente en- in the Hospital
Both Engineers Deny Responsibility foi
the Collision.
Plainfed, Jan. Hillary Rutland,
the Lehgh Valley operator in the sig
nal station at South Plainiicld, was
not in eviderce yesterday morning and
IL was reported that he had been re-
lieved from suty and would not again
be stationed in the signal tower pend
ing the offic' ii investigation as to the
cause Of the accident at West Dunnel-
len, by which sixteen persons lost their
lives and many more were injured. The
mistake which was responsible for the
accident is Believed to have occurred
i'm the South Plainfleld switch tower,
but as yet the blame has not been
definitely fixed.
Rutland says that he went on duty
at noon Monday and received no or
ders to hold the local and not allow
the train TO so on the single track. AS
he supposed the single track TO be
cleared he allowed the local to pro-
coed.
Besides the investigation being made
authorities of Middlesex, the county in
which the accident occurred, are maxi
ing an independent attempt to fix the
responsibility. Coroner Moke of New
Brunswick is the official who will try
to fix the blame. He has impanelled
q jury, and the prelmnares of the
inquest were begun yesterday.
OF the twenty persons who were
brought to the Muhlenberg Hospital in
this city three have died. Their names
are:
Henry f, v'oikel, photographer aged
2S, of Sham II, Pa.
William ] axle, aged 4, of Mount
Carmel, Pa.
An unkno"'n man, supposed to be
named Josephs, who wore a ring made
of a horseshoe nail, bearing the in
scrptlon y. j."
Superintendent Moss of the Muhlen-
berg Hospital said yesterday that of
the seventeen injured persons in the
hospital all had passed a fairly good
night, with the exception of Henry J.
Poreca, the four months old infant.
The child Will probably die.
Edward w. Rick the engineer of the
Bound Broo'r local train and James
Pendergast, 'he engineer of the Halle
ton express train. are among the in.
jured in the Plainfield hospital
Rick is badly injured, and his re-
covery is considered doubtful
PenderSast was reported to be doing
well and was able to converse with
his attendants. He is worrying much
as to who was to blame for the colls-
ion. He frequently asks the nurse
whether the papers which he had in
his possession when he was taken to
the hospital are safe. He claims that
these papers will clear him of respon-
sibility for the accident and will show
that he was running his train accord
ing to orders.
The list of patients at Muhlenberg
Hospital, which includes so far as
known all the injured sufficiently Sc
rious to require hospital treatment,
with the exception of one man, is as
follows:
II. T.. Wekel, Mount Carmel, Pa,
died since admitted; Arthur Predenbo,
Llewellyn, Pa: William Cheshire fire.
man. Bound Brook, N. j.; Nicholas
Borrecca, Henry John Borrecca, AL
bert Borrecca, Louis Borrecca, Mary
EOrrecca, all Of Shamokin. Pa; o. e.
Schaefer, fireman, South Easton, Pa. !;
Edward w. Tick, engineer; Joseph Ma
leslSy, Shenandoah, Pa: Martin Kee-
nan, Locust Gap, Pa; Mary Jarvis,
Margaret Jarvis and George Launes-
key all of Mount Carmel, Pa; -
Maieosta, Shenandoah, Pa j. j. -,
rest of name and address unknown,
James Pendergast, engineer Easton,
Pa; - Hinkle Mount Carmel, Pa. ;
$500 Josephs, residence unknown.
The exception referred to is o. 3.
Stine of Sunbury, Pa, who is at St.
Francis Hospital. Jersey City.
Identifying the Dead.
Bound Brook, N. j., Jan. 11--Coro-
ner Mo5e yesterday morning began ar
rangements for the removal of thu
dead. Those known to be dead are as
follows:
w. b. Hinkle, Mount Carmel, Pa.
John f. Jarvis, Mount Carmel. Pc.
Abner s. Kelser Pottsville, Pa.
Jacob Heller. Mount Carmel. Pa.
Martin Keenan,, Mount Carmel, Pa.
Theodore kohan or Theodore Steck-
Ter, Shamokin, Pa.
w. Leader, Mount Carmel, Pa.
w. Il, Marl;le, Shamokin, Pa.
Frank Reyeski, Mount Carmel, Pa.
II. T., Wicket, Mount Carmel, Pa.
Richard Wicket, Mount Carmel. Pa.
Unknown man, supposed to be nam
ed Josephs
Unknown woman, supposed to be
| named Wrelik.
Unknown woman wearing wedding
| ring.
Unknown man of stout build, with
blue eyes and sandy moustache, hav.
| ing the initial III" on his handker.
| chief.
Unknown woman wearing gray dree-
trimmed with two rows of black brat
AS fast as the bodies were claim
! by friends, Coroner Moke granted %
| mits for the removal of the dead.
The unrecogniZed bodies will be se.'
| to the morgue in New Brunswick.
Traffic was resumed on both trac,.
yesterday morning.
Many pers ms visited the scene
the wreck, hoping to find some trac,
| Of friends VINO were believed to hay,
been on the cast bound train.
I