Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-12-10


Train.
A whole car load of Italian immigrants
eaten up by fire as completely and al
most as rapidly as straws in furnace;
another car full of Italians squeezed to-
gether till it occupied space less than
eight feet long on the tracks. half its oc-
cupants killed and the car and the bodies
then burned to ashes; these are the two
central horrors in fearful railroad
wreck on the Wabash road near Seneca,
Mich.
Though only fifteen persons are posi-
lively known to be dead, and very few
bodies have been recovered, the full death
list, it is thought, will prove to be very
close to eighty. In addition seventy-six
men, women and children were injured,
some of them seriously. The dead and
| injured together will foot up about half
of the 800 passengers who were carried
| into collision on the Inflated trains.
Italians Bouul for Colorado.
The Italians, of whom there were about
seventy-lve, were all on their way TO
work in the coal mines at Trinita, Colo.
They were riding in two light, and in
comparison with vestibuled cars, fimsy,
second-class coaches. OF the thirty-ive
in the front car none is accounted for.
From the second car about half We're res
cued. The bodies Of TIE dead were burn
ed so completely that the fragments are
not only impossible to identify but they
| cannot even be separated from one anoth-
er as different human bodies.
| The blame for the collision is placed on
| Conductor George NJ. Martin and Engi.
neer A. L. Strong Of the east-bound train,
| No. 4, known as the Continental limited.
| They had been ordered to stop for the
west bound train, No. -, with which
| they coHided, at Seneca, and to stop at
| Sand Greek, four and half miles far
ther east, for another train. Consequent
| ly the train for the west was obeying
| orders and they were not.
Engineer Strong has been taken to Dc.
troit, badly injured. He asserts positive.
| ly that he was ordered to stop at Sand
| Creek and not at Seneca. That he either
forgot his orders or misread them are the
| only two alternatives which Superinten'
| dent Burns sees.
The disaster had its marvellous escapes,
as well as its fearful deaths. On the west
| bound train the Italians became a yica-
rious sacrifice for the passengers in the
six cars behind them. Their two frail
| coaches broke the force of the crash for
the rear cars, and before the latter burn
| ed the occupants, little injured, got safely
away.
As for the other train, the east-Dound
one, only one of its cars suffered severe.
| ". 1t was q day coach, between the
smoker and the dining car. There is left
besides the iron work just the roof of the
car and some splinters. It's body has
been utterly destroyed. In it were tif'
teen to eighteen passengers.
Some Miraculous Escapes.
Six were taken out dead, five We're Sc
verely injured, and tho others escaped al,
most tremendously with slight bruises.
The engineers Of the two trains knew
what was coming when they were still
three miles apart. The track between
| Adrian and Sand Creek is straight and
clear. Each engineer saw the others
headlight and thought it waiting at the
coming station for him. The east-bound
| train slowed from sixty-liye to fifty miles
an hour. The west-bound train was run
ming at thirty miles.
The few miles of separation when the
| engineers realized the situation were cut
down so quickly that they had barely
| time to reverse their engines and jump.
| The little margin of time saved the en-
| gineers, but not the fremcn. The two
| firemen on the engines of the rear train
both jumped too late, and were crushed
to death.
The crash of tho collision shook houses
800 yards away. The big mogui engine
No. 600, east bound, fairly ate up the
little engine, No. SO. at the head of the
other train. After this destruction Of one
engine and half of another, the big mogul
reared backward turned half somer
sault plowed a hole several feet deep in
the ditch On the right side Of the track
and lay with her cupola toward the sta
ton from which she had just come, and
her machiDery shreking and belchinS
steam.
Fire Spread Rapidly.
The front cars of each train piled them
selves upon the engines The flames,
whether started by the stoves the light
ing plant OF the engine fire, had full pos
session almost on the instant. The un-
hurt passengers swarmcd ont, and rushed
to the rescue OF those imprisoned under
car seats and broken beams in the burn
ing cars. But those outside were as help
less to save as those inside were to es-
cape. Five minutes and the fire was so
hot that 40 one could approach within
800 or 400 feet
Meantime rescuiDG parties, with ambu-
lance trains. if they can be SO styled,
were hurrying toward the scene from
Adrian, from Montpelier Ohio, and from
Peru, Ind. Two unhurt Pullman cars had
been made into hospitals and were hauled
back to Adrian. y score Of injured were
taken to Feru and many others to De
troit.
The loss to the railroad is placed by
Superintendent Barns at $4,000.
The list Of dead and injured given out
by the railroad company is much smaller
than the one above. Il shows but ten
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