The true northerner., 1901-02-01
He WENT TO SLEEP
An Engineers Mistake Caused the
Death of Five Trainmen.
ANOTHER SERIOUSLY INJURED
He Mistood the First Section Of a
Train for the Last-Two Engines
and Ten Loaded Cars Demolished In
the Collision.

Baltimore, Jan. pa special from
Parkersburg, Va, to the Morning Her
aid says:
Five persons dead and one severely
wounded, two engines and ten loaded
cars wrecked is the result of mistake
of train crew Monday afternoon be-
tween Petroleum and Volcano juno
tion on the Baltimore e. Ohio railroad.
1t was the old story of the engineer
being asleep at his post and mistaking
the first section of a passing train for
the second. Thinking both had passed.
he pulled his train into the main track
and sped onward to what would seem
to have necessarily been his death.
The dead are: j. b. Watkins, engi-
Beer train No. 9S, from Grafton; w.
w. Cunningham, fireman of No SO, re-
Gently from the second division; M.
Courtney, of Parkersburg, brakeman
on No. 9S; j. 7. Bailey, of Parkers-
burg, fireman on No. 81; j. G.. Bailey,
Kenawaha, brakeman on 81.
The injured: Davidson, OF
Grafton, engineer on 81, burned and
cut and bruised will recover.
The Herald correspondent has just
returned from the scene of the wreck.
The scene was indescribable. All the
five men pinned under the wreck were
dead and only one of the bodies had
been found. He was j. G.. Bailey.
whose body was crushed so as to be
unrecognizable and could only be iden-
titled by his watch, which stoppCs at
1:05 p. m. On account of the inacces-
sibility Of the place where the wreck
occurred it was impossible to bring
the body to Parkersburg, and it will be
held at Petroleum until the trains get
through to-day.
The accident occurred in a cut on a
curve on a heavy down grade and at
the end of a bridge. That anyone was
saved at all is almost a miracle. The
third section of No 81 was on the sid
ing at Petroleum, with orders TO wait
there till the second section of No. 9S
passed east. Engineer Davidson, who
escaped with slight injuries, was the
engineer on No. 81 and went to sleep
on the siding.
When the first section went by he
thought it was the second section, and
started out on to the main track. His
fireman and forward brakeman, both
of whom were killed, must also have
been asleep. for they allowed him to
take the train out. The conductor Of
the first 9S, after he passed saw Da-
wilson pulling out and tried to wave
him to stop, but failed. The conduc-
tor Of the fourth 81, seeing the third
section pull out. ran forward after it
as fast as possible, his engineer whist
ling down brakes, and the conductor
of the wrecked train ran over the tops
of the cars till he reached the next
car to the last one wrecked in his at
tempt to stop the engineer. but none
of them attracted his attention in
time.
Conductor Lang managed to jump
in time 10 save himself.
All passengers on the east and west
bound accommodations were trans
ferred at the wreck, but the fast trains
were sent around by Moundsville and
the Ohio River railroad.
Brakeman Leslie Davis, whose day
II was to go out on 9S. owes his life to
the call boys failure to find him. and
Courtney was substituted and went to
his death,