The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1899-06-01
SKULL LITERALLY CUT OFF.
Switchman j. C. Bradley Meets a Ter
rible Death This Morning.

TlDl0 OeaLn xnIS NIOrn1DRs
| Although more accidents have occurred
on the railway here during the past year
than for years previous, the most dread
full, perhaps, is that which happened
at $50 o'clock this morning in the
yards, when John G. Bradley, switch
man for the o. R. & N, was mutilated
in a terrible manner, losing his life in
stantlY.
T. seems from the evidence given that
the switch train was just a short dis
tance west of the depot and had car to
"kick" in on the eide track. Bradley
stepped down between the cars to uu.
couple them, and must in some way
have been thrown down. No one saw
just how the accident happened, but,
thinking tie train was going fast enough,
the yard master gave the signal to stop.
The car gave such jump that it almoet
seemed they had got into ditch. Just
as it stopped it was discovered th.t
Bradley was under the train.
Going to where he lay, they beheld
an awful sight. He lay directly across
the track, his feet across the north rail,
and his head, or what was left of it, just
inside the south rail. Evidently he had
fallen in some way and was dragged
short distance, when his head struck
the break rail and the top was literally
cut off, large portion of his brains
| lying about five feet from the track; his
left arm was all shattered and torn, and
his right leg at the ankle was mashed
and stripped of the skin. It was a sight
that the men who witnessed will never
forget. The body was taken to the un-
dertaking parlors of VIM. Michel, where
an inquest was held, with the following
verdict:
We the jury summoned by w. II.
Butte, coroner of Wasco county, state OF
Oregon, to inquire into the cause of the
death of the body now before us, from
an examination of the body of the de-
ceased, and from the testimony pro-
duced before US, and after due and care
full consideration and deliberation find
the following facts:
That the deceased was John Charles
Bradley, a single man, age about 81
/ years, whose occupation was switch
man in the o. r. d N. Co. yards at The
| Dalles, Oregon, and that he came to his
death at the hour of 6:35 o'clock a. m.
on the first day of June, 1899, in said
railroad yards, while performing his
duties as such switchman; that said
death was caused by being run over by
part of the train upon which he was
working while attempting to uncouple a
car or said cars from said train. That
from the evidence and circumstances
surrounding said death, said death WAS
caused by accident, and that no person
or persons are to blame therefor.
NED h. GATES,
F. q. Connolly,
GEO. A. LIEBE,
F. H. WAKEFIELD,
T. A. WARD.
Dalles City. Oregon, June /, 1899
Bradley was an unmarried man OF
81 years, and had worked here several
months during the fall, going East some
time in January. He returned recently,
and commenced work as ewitchman last
Sunday. His home was in Philadelphia,
where he is said to have two sisters
living. All witnesses who knew him
spoke in the hest of terms of his char
acser at the iEqneet this morning.
The funeral will he held from the
Methodist church tomorrow afternoon
at o'clock. a are invited to be
present and give the poor unfortunate
man such burial as we would want a
friend to have under the same circum-
| stances.