The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-06-25

Inere are two undertakerS there.
Both establishments were soon full OF
the mangled remains of the passengers
Some OF the bOdieSwere terribly burned,
while others were crushed beyond
fication in the majority of the cases
were letters and papers in the pockets
of the victims.
Only three women were on the train.
Two escaped. 1t is presumed that the
other perished, but the body has not
been found.
Besides the regular crew of the train,
several conductors and other employees
were en- route to Atlanta All were
killed. Conductor W. A Barclay was in
charge of the train
A section boss with a gang of eight
negroes occupied seats in the second
to repair a washout on the Georgia
Midland & Gulf road. Not one escaped
when the car went down.
DEATH LIST GROWS.
Atlanta, Ca, June 25.-Additional re-
ports received here today from the
scene of the wreck on the Macon branch
of the Southern railway at MacDonough
show that the list of dead will probably
number Al. The number of the gang of
section hands which was on the wreck
ed train is not known. AS the work Of
removing the wreckage proceeded,
bodies of negro laborers were found un-
der the debris and several have been
recovered along the banks of the creek.
tire gang was killed. Six bodies were
brought here today to await instructions
from relatives as to their disposition.
The work of repairing the road bed is
proceeding and traffic will be resumed
probably today.
DIGGING OUT THE DEAD.
Atlanta, Ga, June 25.-Three bodies
were found this morning in the wreck
age. They are:
D. Y. GRIFFIN, supervisor.
T, MOP RTSSETTE SlInAri0fe
ent of pumps
]. H. HUNICUTT, freight conductor
Two other bodies c11arred to pieces.
The passengers who We're saved in the
Pullman car were not seriously hurt.
There have been thirty bodies taken
| from the wreck and searchers are find
| ing more as the wreckage is removed.
| One body can be seen under a heavy
| stone that can not be removed until
| the rock is taken up.
Rain continues falling, but the rail-
| way officials are rushing the work of
| clearing the wreck and building a tres
i tie Eighteen of the bodies thus far
/ recovered were employees of the road
| Hundreds of people are visiting the
wreck among them scores trying to
| identify their relatives and friends
MISS MERRITT'S EXPERIENCE.
Macon, Ga, June 25.-Miss Mamie
| Merritt,a a teacher in the Emerson school
| of oratory of Boston, arrived here to-
! y.
| wreck as follows:
1T began to rain about the time we
| left Macon, and rained inceSSantly all
the way up to McDonough.
THE conductor came through where
we were sitting in the rear of the sleep
er, to let down window, as the rain
had began to come in. AS he put it
| down I reached over to gather up MY
macintosh which I had spread across
my lap and while I was bending for
ward the crash came.
Quickly looking up saw the. conduc-
tor being thrown toward the front of
the car. I was on the left of the car,
my friend was on the opposite side and
the conductor was falling headIong over
the seats on the right That was the
last saw. Then I remembered the car
plunging downward into the water The
car was turned over on the side on
which was sitting and the next I knew
Miss Alden was lying across me
THE water had risen up to our waists
and I noticed that Miss Alden's head
| was lower than mine and fearing the
water would cover her took her in my
arms and lifted her up. We both were
wedged in and could not move our
bodies below our waists For some time
we lay helpless, and called for help but
| none came.
Miss Alden had a steam pipe across
| her body and she was across me and
was further wedged down with a berth
| partition. began to pull the debris Off
with my hands and when I had removed
all that was loose. 1 took a wooden
beam and pried the steam pipe from of
my friend. Finally I got it loose and
relieved her of it's pressure. I was still
wedged down by the partition. I got
hold of another longer piece of wood anc
began to pry the partition and at last
pulled myself from under it, Then
erawled out in the open space in the cal
where I could look out through the bro
ken aperture.
Il could see the embankment and the
, rails and the men who had gotten oui
of the smoking apartment standing ant
walking about up the embankment. ]
called to them but they paid no atten
tion, but a negro porter heard me ant
came to our assistance.
! by his aid I managed to pull rnysel
out on top of the sleeper and crawl t,
the end next to the embankment thel
called again and again to the men t,
help US up, but they only cried back t,
@ US; All right
! In the meantime Miss Alden haC
. gotten on to the roof of the car and af
= ter she had tainted and a long wait. :
a gentleman from Atlanta came down tn
q embankment and tied a rope about m,
waist and I was drawn up the steep EN-
bankment."