Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1901-12-05
Eighty People We're Killed in the
Disaster on the Wabash
R. R. Last Might Week.
THE SCENES WERE MOST PlTIFUL
Terrific Crash Caused by an
Engineer Misleading Orders
1.-The Wreckage Caught
Fire and Many People
We're Roasted.

Two passenger trains on the Wabash
railroad, ons going west and the ether
east, mot in iright.ul collision while
going at a must full 81 eed, one mile
east of Seneca, Men, shortly aftor
O'Clock last night week, and were
wrecked in the drGanful impact, entail
lug tire nendors oss OF life.
The weatbound train was known ~
No. Ii, AMI was regular, which,
besides Its regular coaches, had several
coaches filled with lta inu imm grants
going west from New York lhs cast
bound train was known as No. 4, the
Continental Limited. 1t was vesti-
bulel train, cons sting of baggage
car, combination coach and sleeper.
The cause Of the wreck was a mis-
reading OF orders by Engineer Strong
of the Cont mental Limited. The order,
it is claimed, read "Pass at Seneca, 2
hut Strong understood it to read Sand
Creek. The conductor of the train did
not know that the engineer had mis-
understood the order,aud supposed that
his train WIS going on siding. Find
ing that the train was running rapidly,
The conductor put on the airbrakss
himself, but it was too late. The two
trains crashed together. and the cars on
the wcstbound train were crumpled up
in q heap of ruins. t-
Engineer Strong stated that his order
| directed him to pass trains Nos. .l3 and
| 3 the latter closely followed No 13
| from Det oit) at Sand Greek. Said
| Strong - saw the headlight of No. Ii
! four or five miles before the collision
occurred, hut supposed the tam was
/ sidotracked at Sand Greek waiting for
us to pass The glare of the powerful
electric headlight made il impossible
to see the exact looat ON of the other
train. My fireman aud both jumped
from the right hand gsneway.
| Strong and the fireman were both
! hurled 100 feet, but although scratched.
out and terribly Jared, they were not
seriously injured.
The immigrants and other passengers
on train No. ID were crushed between
the splintered cars. Few, il any,
escaped without injury.
10 add to the horror the wfecSage
caught tlre Immediately, and in short
| time the bodies OF the dead and these
| of the injured who were p mod down
were being burned. The spot where the
wreck occurred was in the open coun-
! try, with but one farmhouse nearby,
| and facilities for aiding the injured
were extremely inadequate.
\ As soon as the news of the disaster
| reached Superintendent Burns relief
train was dispatched to the scene with
score or more Of surgeons on board.
Farmers from nearby and those who
escaped from the wreck alive made
heroic efforts to rescue the less for
| tunate
The condition of the wreck was such
that in the darkness it was impossible
to render immediate aid.
Six cars Of the westbound train,
crowded with imm grants uickly burst
into flames. This unfortunates fought
mady their attempt to crawl OUT of
doors and windows, thus hindering
each other so that the bulk Of them
were unable to escape,
The immigrant train was made up of
nine cars behind two engines Six OF
these cars we're iammed together, and
those in the cars were slowly roasted 10
death. There was no means at hand to
fight the fire, and the agonized snrieks
OF the unfortunates were appalling.
''It was a Variable hell OF fire, said
Victor q. Greenbaum of New York
City, who escaped with slight injuries.
People who came hurrying to the
5cone from farmhouses in that Locality
stood about the wreclage helplessly, and
held their hands to their ears to shut
out the frigbtful screams, and turned
their eyes away, because 1t was more
than they could bear"