The age-herald., 1900-06-25
THIRTY-FIvE DEAD
 BODIES RECOVERED
Details Add Horror to the FrightfuI Catastrophy on
 the Southern Railway

The storm did not abate in fury. Flashes of lightning added to the steady glow of the burning train and lit up the scene with fearful distinctness.
 Flagman Quinlan, who was one of the
 first to get out, at once started for the nearest telegraph station Making his way as rapidly as possible in the face of the
 blinding storm, he stumbled into the of- flee at McDonough, and after telling the night operator of the wreck, fell fainting on the floor. Word was quickly sent to both Atlanta and Macon, but no assistance
 was to be had except from the latter city, as the interrupted track prevented the ar rival of any train from Macon.
 Bodies Gathered Up at Daylight Nearly the entire male population of Mc- Donough went to the scene to render as-
 sistance, but little could be done by the rescuers, as the fire kept them at dis
 tance At daylight the bodies that had
 floated from the gorge were gathered up. One body was found mile from the wreck
 and many were seen along its banks. A wrecking train was started out from Atlanta at midnight, but owing to the
 burning wreckage nothing could be done
 until morning. A special train at 6 o'clock this morning took doctors, ministers, rail-
 road officials and helpers to the scene, but nothing could be done save to gather up
 the bodies.
 As the dead were found they were re- moved to McDonough. There are two un-
 dertakers there. Both establishments were soon full of the mangled remains of the passengers. Some of the bodies were ter ribly burned, while others were crushed beyond recognition. The only means of Identification in the majority of the cases
 were letters and papers in the pockets of the victims in the catastrophe
 Bodies Prepared for Burial The bodies were prepared for burial as rapidly as possible. Some may be buried at McDonough Others will be sent to their
 homes as fast as the proper addresses can
 be ascertained
 Only three women were on the train. Two
 escaped. It is presumed that the other per-
 ished, but the body has not been found.
 Besides the regular crew on the train, several conductors and other employees were en route to Atlanta to spend Sunday. All were killed. Conductor w. A. Barclay was in charge of the train.
 section boss with a gang of eight ne- groes occupied seats in the second-class
 coach. They were on their way to repair a washout on the Georgia, Midland and Gulf road. Not one escaped when the car went down.
 A train bringing some of the dead from the wreck arrived in Atlanta tonight. The bodies on board were those of Engineer Sullivan, who went down with his engine; Conductor w. A. Barclay, conductor in charge; w. H. Green, coored fireman, and J. H. Hunnicut, conductor on branch line, who was on his way to Atlanta to spend Sunday with his wife.
 The party who escaped divided here,
 some remaining in Atlanta overnight and others continuing their journeys. Tells His Experience
 Jesse L. Rohr, travelling salesman of Baltimore, one of those rescued, was seen
 at the Kimball House tonight. He had
 this to say of his experience last night:
 "I was in the Pullman with the others
 who escaped with their lives when the
 wreck occurred. There was not an in-
 stant's warning. We heard suddenly an
 indistinct crash and the next instant felt
 our car pitch forward and drop. The for
 ward end of the car filled with water at
 once and the lights went out. We heard
 the roar of rushing waters, and knew we
 were in a stream of some kind. We got
 down on all fours and felt and crawled
 our way to the top of the car and then out.
 The car was hanging by it's rear trucks to
 the stone abutment of the culvert. and,
 tlo oft tba tor
 to and fro like great pendulum It was
 pitch dark, and the rain was coming down
 in torrents Peering into the breach in the
 track, we could see confused mass of
 broken cars already beginning to burn. What impressed me was the fact that not a single call for help was heard. Those in
 the forward coaches must have met death instantly. The wreckage was on fire when we reached the top of our car, and lit up the scene brightly
 Looking down toward the middle of our car, 1 saw the head and shoulders of a woman, and soon heard her cry: Save us, we are alive but we could do nothing for her then, as there was no rope to be had and we were afraid the car would swing from it's position. Then came the struggle to get to the track above. We were many feet from the level of the roadbed. Great chunks of earth, loosened by the rain, came falling down on us, and we were nearly buried two or three times. We feared, too that the stone abutment had weakened in its position by the giving away of the earth. We took hold of the roots, and several times as we neared the top of the bank they pulled out and sent us tumbling back on the car. Once MT. Flynn, who was one of our little party. got within grasping distance of the top. Suddenly to our horror he lost his hold and down he came. He did not stop at the car this time, however, but went on into the river and was carried away by the terrific rush of waters. I was delighted at daylight, how ever, to see him walk up to our party in McDonough, and tell us that he had man. aged to catch tree after a ride of a mile or more in the water.
 "Flagman Quinlan worked like the hero that he is. He finally got to the top and ran as fast as he could to a farm house .rI~vr and xxrith too