The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-08-06
THREE WERE KILLED
-+--
Another Body Discovered Near R.
G. W. Wreck.
SEEN BY PASSENGERS
CORPSE HALF MILE FROM THE
SCENE.
Body Was Terribly Mangled and
Covered With Blood-Bodies of
Engineer and Fireman Brought to
This City-Wreck Cleared Away
and Trains Are Running.

There were three men killed in the
wreck on the Rio Grande Western. in
stead of two, if statements of tourists
on the train which reached here early
this morning are to be credited. Two
men from Colorado and several others
from different parts of the east saw a
third body of a dead man, making
three with the engineer and fireman.
j. S. Waugh, business man of Den
YER, who is on his way to Oregon, told
the story this morning. Mr.. Waugh
came in on the second section of the
train. reaching here at 2:30 a. IN.
After we had taken on the bodies of
the engineer and fireman at the scene
of the wreck, five or six miles east of
Green River. we passed on. About one
half of mile west of the scene we saw
another body off to one side of the
track. some twenty or thirty feet, lying
in small ditch or gully The man
was fearfully mangled up. and his coat
was thrown up about his head, partly
covering it. His legs swere twisted
about as if they had been crushed. On
t3e coat there were stains of blood and
4 IT, showing that he had been thrown
S5out.
I'VE did not get off and investigate,
for the train was moving slowly, and
we did not have time. But our atten-
ton was attracted to the scene, and
from the attitude of the figure we were
positive that the man was dead.
Il cannot explain his position so far
away from the wreck. The trainmen
knew nothing about the matter, and
even if they Gid l don't believe they
would tell, for they have been very reti-
cert about the accident. But we came
to the conclusion that this man was a
tramp or a trainman on the freight,
probably the former. and when the
wreck came he was injured and started
to walk up the track. Overcome with
his wounds, he fell. exhausted, when
half-mile away and died AS no in
vestigation had been made by the
wrecking crew that far up the track,
they had not likely come across the
body.
A Frightful Scene.
1.-The scene at the wreck was one of
frightful calamity. The engine had
been thrown to the left side of the
track and had turned half over till it
was lying on its back. Under this two
men were found dead On the same
siGo a cattle car ana a freight car had
been thrown off and were smashed into
splinters. 1t was difficult to make out
that there were two cars. box ear
had been thrown to the right side and
it. too was smashed all to pieces.
THE wreck was caused by the wash
out of about tweIty feet of track. A
stream which had run through cul-
vert had swollen and carried away the
embankment. The freight train had
seemingly run into this without warn
ing"
Bodies Brought In.
The bodies of Engineer T. ]. Mcmahon
and Fireman J. H. Whalen. who were
killed in the Rio Grande Western wreck
near Green River. were brought to this
city on the delayed train early this morn
ing and taken to S. ID. Evans undertake
ing establishment for preparation for
burial. Whalen's remains will be sent to
Colorado Springs. the home of his father.
for interment. and what disposition will be
made of McMahon's will be decided later
cousin of Whalen. is the only relative of
either man living in Salt Lake. Whalen's
mother and sisters are expected here to-
day.
The bodies came in rude boxes. prob
ably manufactured at the scene of the
wreck. and were packed in ice: The names
of the dead men were Inscribed on the
covers, but there was nothing else TO IN
dictate who they were. No one, save the
baggageman. accompanied them.
Superintendent Welby did not return
this morning but was still at the scene
of the wreck when the delayed trains left.
There We're four sections arrived-the
first at 2:15 a. m. ten minutes apart.
Many passengers got off from each. and
According to them the company did
everything possible to clear. the tracks
and put the trains through, Superinteud-
ent NNelby working like a beaver. But.
nevertheless. the delay of forty-eight
hours was eXasperating out in the desert
and the fare was not at all
tempting All the hacks and BUSES in
town were kept going for two hours after
the trains began to arrive.