The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-01-10
DEATH ON T'HE RAIL
Continued from First Page.

Continued from First Page.
safety. The third section of this train
was almost an hour late. It's seven
cars were crowded with 400 excursion
lists, most Of them from Mount Carmel
and Shamokin, Mahoney City, Hazel
ton, Ashland and Pottsville, Pa. The
party was travelling under the au-
spices Of the Business Mems excur-
sion, an annual event which many pat
roniZe for a three days visit to New
York. Not few of the excursionists
were coming to visit the McCoy-Shar-
key fight. Their train crossed over
at Bound Brook and proceeded, like
the preceding sections, on the west
bound tracks. Meanwhile, there had
been waiting at Newmarket a local
train that plies regularly between
New York and Bound Brook It's num-
Der on the schedule is II, and it is due
in Bound Brook at II SO a. m. Owing
to the traffic going on one track, it was
almost an hour late. At last the train
dispatcher at South Plainfield gave it
permission to go. Just before reach
ing West Dunelen, Engineer Rick
slowed his train down, because he
stops for passengers, if there are any.
Martin Brennan, the signal man, threw
up his arms and waved them as if to
say there were no passengers, so the
local put on steam and headed round
the curve, going at about twenty-five
miles an hour. There were but four
passengers on the local. In the cab
of the excursion train there were
James Prendergast, the engineer, with
his fireman, Joseph Cheshire. They
saw the local as it was on the curve.
With shrieking whistles and brakes
grinding sparks from the wheels, the
excursion train bore down to what
seemed certain destruction.
AN AWFUL CRASH.
The passengers, alarmed at the con-
tinued whiStling, opened the windows,
mothers snatched their children in their
arms, men started from their seats.
but before they had time to find out
what was the matter they We're hurled
headlong, knocked serse!ess and many
killed outright. The two engines, from
which both crews had jumped, came
together with an awful crash. The
excursion train was probably going at
about fifteen miles an hour. The local
engine, as if tripped in its fast flight,
turned a complete somersault and came
down beside it's now demolished OBJ
struction. But it's career was not end
ed before it had damned the tender of
the excursion train almost from one
end to the other of the first car of the
train from Shamokin. The tender stop
ped a few seats from the rear door.
The car. or what was left of it, rolled
over, carrying with it the imbedded
tender, the fragments of a dozen bodies
and the imprisoned wounded who had
been carried with the jagged iron on
its relentless course through the coach.
1t was in the first car of the excursion
train that all the deaths and most of
the casualties occurred. The other
cars though their occupants were bad
ly shaken, stayed on the track and
were in a condition to be hauled off.
The baggage car in front of the local
train was rather badly smashed.
SAW THE COLLISION.
A few minutes before the trains
crashed, George WeidmalI, of Dunelen,
had tethered his coal wagon to a post
at the crossing a few yards from where
the engines met.
Il saw them coming" he said, 1.-The
east bound whistling for mad and the
local coming around the corner 1 wav-
ed my arms, but before ne saw me the
engineer of the local saw what he was
up against People were sticking their
heads out of the windows. The en-
gineers and firemen jumped. The trains
banged into each other and the local
climbed over the other as if she were
going right on. Then she turned over
and came down on her smokestack
Then the other passengers and train
men came running up
From Dunelen, Bound Brook and
other places doctors were quickly sum-
moned. They came over the Central
Railroad Of New Jersey, whose tracks
run parallel with the Lehigh at this
point about 400 yards distant Wreck
ing trains were quickly on hand. AS
the dead were taken from the demolish-
ed car they were put in the rear cars of
the excursion train and taken to Bound
Brook, where coroner's inquest was
held tonight. The injured were put in
the cars of the local train. Twenty-one
were taken to Plainfield hospital, while
the less seriously injured went on to
Jersey City and New York.
Engineer Prendergast, who weighs
almost 800 pounds, jumped too late He
was caught under his engine and for
three hours lay pinioned in frightful
agony. When at last huge crane lift
ed the iron off his body he was found
so badly injured that he Is expected
to die
The loss Of life inflicted upon the
train would probably have been MOTH
Ing like 1t was had it not been for the
fact that at Mauch Chunk the baggage
car of the excursion train was found
to have hot box and was taken off.
thus leaving the crowded day coach
next to the engine. If this coach had
retained the position it held when the
train left Shamokin, probably only a
few lives would have been lost.
WRONG ORDERS GIVEN.
Engineer Rick, of the local. was
found on the tracks so badly injured
that little hope is entertained of his
recovery. Despite the blood that flow
ed from his mouth Rick gurgled out:
Some one gave wrong orders.
know how 1t happened, but 1 cannot
speak now"
In this connection W. o. Sprigg. the
superintendent of the Amboy and
Eastern division of the Lehigh Valley,
said:
THE accident is evidently due to a
blunder in orders"
General Passenger Agent Lee had no
explanation to make.
On this section Of the Lehigh Valley