The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1900-06-01
CHAPTER VII.


CHAPTER VII.
As the engine drew near the scene Of
the wreck q great crowd could be seen
standing about the track. Before the
train came to stop Robert Hardy
leaped down from the cab and strug-
gled forward, uttering cries Of which
he himself probably was not conscious.
The accident had occurred upon a
bridge which spanned small river in
the vicinity of Baldwin. near which
town Mr. Hardy's brother lived.
The engine, mail car, two day coach
es and two sleepers had crashed
through and, falling a distance Of 80
feet, had partly broken through the
Ice Of the frozen stream. To add to the
horror of the disaster the two sieapers
had caught fire, and there was abso-
lutely no means to fight 1t. Mr.. Hardy
caught confused glimpses Of men down
on the ice throwing handfuls OF snow
upon the blazing timbers in frantic
attempt to drive back or put out the
flames. He fell rather than scrambled
down the steep. slippery bank of the
stream, and then the full horror Of the
situation began to dawn upon him.
The baggage car and tender had fall
en- in such q way that the trucks rested
upright on the Ice, and the position Of
the timbers was relatively that Of the
train before 1t had left the track. One
day coach lay upon its side, but had
broken completely in two as If some
giant hand had pulled 1t apart, leaving
the ragged ends Of timbers projecting
toward one another In such curious
fashion that If the two ends of the car
had been pushed toward the middle
the splintered beams would have fitted
into place almost as IL made on a pat
tern. The other day coach had fallen
upon one end, and one-third Of the en-
tire coach was under water. The other
end, resting partly against the broken
car. stuck up In the air like some Gu
rious, fantastic pillar or leaning tower.
Mr.. Hardy was conscious of all this
and more as he heard the groans Of the
injured and the cries Of those begging
to be released from the timbers under
which they had been caught. But his
own children! Never had he loved
them as now.
The crowd Of people had increased to
a mob. The confusion was that Of ter
ror. Mr.. Hardy rushed about the
wreck searching for his children. q
great throbbing at his heart as he
thought Of their probable fate, when
the sweetest Of all sounds, Bessie's
dear voice, came to him, and the next
minute he had caught up the child as
she ran to him and strained her to his
breast as in the old days when he had
carried her about the house and yard.
"Where are Will and Clarar'
"Oh, father, they're here, and Will
wasn't hurt much more than I was,
but Clara has tainted, and she is lying
down over here!'
Bess dragged her father out across
the ice to the edge of the bank, where
a number of the victims had been laid
on the cushions of the seats, some
dead, some dying. There lay Clara
very white and still, with VIII bend
ing over her, himself bleeding from
several wounds about the head and
hands, but still conscious and trying to
restore his sister.
Mr.. Hardy kneeled down In the snow
by his sons side. and VIII, seeing him
there. was not surprised, but he sob
bed excitedly, "Oh, she is deadp'
"No." replied her father; ''she is not. {"
Clara stirred, and her lips moved.
but she did not open her eyes, and then
her father noticed that a strange mark
lay over her face.
How Mr.. Hardy succeeded in carry
ing the girl to the top of the bank;
how he left her there in the care Of
brave hearted women while he went
down into that helrs pit to rescue vic
Tins imprisoned and groaning for help;
how Bess related the accident Of the
night and tried to explain how she
was not hurt except a scratch or two,
because she fell between two car seat
cushions that were jammed around her
and protected her from injury; how the
excitement grew as 1t was discovered
that the dead and dying would number
more than rs instead of 10 or IL, as
Burns had telephoned; how finally
Robert Hardy and. VIII and Bess and
Clara, with other victims, were taken
back to Barton, where a great crowd
Of anxious, pale faced people was surg
ing through the station and over the
track; how James Caxton was first to
board the train down by the shops at
the risk of his neck as in the rainy
darkness he swung himself on the dead
run up to the platform of the coach:
how Mrs. Hardy met her children and
husband; how there was sorrow in
r"ny home in Barton that night and
for many days to come; how Mr.. Har-
dy finally, little after midnight, en-
tirely exhausted by the events of the
day and night fell asleep and dreamed
the scene all over again-all this and a
great deal more might be Of interest
concerning one Of the most remarkable
railroad accidents that ever occurred
In this country. but would be out of
place In this narrative. For 1t is all