The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-05-29
TIL BOILER ] O.
ENG|N DEFECTIVE

EhG|h DEFECTIVE:
Continued from First Page.
chester, and injury resulting In the death
to Fireman and Trainman Robert Taylor
and James Wingate.. both colored, and
possible fatal injury to- illiam Savage
and Stephen Basser. both colored, now
at the Retreat for the Sick.
After hearing evidence from experts
and many engineers, and being In ses-
sion from 10 A. M until $40 p NJ. the
above verdict was reached by the Coro-
ner' s Jury. which consisted OF the gem
tlemen named.
The first witness examined was the
hostler of the round house In NIanches-.
ter, Mr. Thomas Robertson. His evt-
dence was substance this: It was his
duty to have the proper amount OF
steam and water in an engine before the
engineer started out on his run.
DR.. Brodnax asked: did you inspect
engine No. 60 before 1t left yesterday
morning?n
Mr.. Robertson answered: 1T did,
He then said that the engine had It's
supply Of water and steam and that ne
had left Mr. Gwathney at the Nancnes-
ter round-house About 4:30 a. NJ. ne
went in an engine with Mr.. GWathnes
over to Richmonus and while on the way,
the injector was turned on. ms ms i ,I's,,
tor, he said, was kept at work nearly "a, al
the time an engine was IN motlon. ~
only time it stopped work wa 5Wn ne tl .s
boiler got too full of water, and tnen II
was only for a short time.
He said ne left Mr.. Gwathncy with ehe
20, minutes before
the accident occurred Dr.. Broona *
asked if the water supply would give out
between Richmond and the point OF the
accident To this Mr.. Robertson replied
that not unless the injector was not put
to work, and this he had seen to. lhen
the only reason for 1t being turned on
| would have been the overftowirg OF the
boiler.
REPAIRED IN JANUARY.
Mr.. ]. W. oplinger: Master. Mechanic &c INC
| stationed at Rocky Mount. was the sec
end witness. He said he had entire
charge OF the shops at-this place, and
superintended the rerUlrs to all engines
! of the road brought there.
He said that he was under the impress
| sion that engine No. SO, the wrecked one,
was repaired at the shops In. January. Al
this time it was given a general repair
ling. New tires were put on. new tank,
- =
| stay bolts were put in.
E..Did it need new boiler?" asked DR.,
! Brodnax.
.sNo,s SIR replied Mr. oplinger.
He said he did not know. just exactly
| how many stay-bolts had been placed IN
the engine. not having his hook with him.
The inspector sees the engines before they
leave on every trip. and TINS one .hail
beer looked ever last week. It had not been
! ! -; &of ,oS n
| By the name plate on the engine men
ton above. it is eleven years Old. Dr.
! 13rcdnax asked if the boiler from one
engine could be used in another, and the
plates moved In this manner the Ell
giuue might be much older than eleven
years Mr.. Oplinger said he did not thlnk
| this was likely, yet 1t might have been
| done.
--z THE FOREMAN'S VIEW.
| Mr.. J. T. Johnson, foreman of the round
! house. testified in part as follows: He had
to see after all engines before they lei
the Yards: see that all bolts were IN con-
| dition for the trip; engine No. 50 mad peer
| reported on the last trip that 1t wa
! steaming badly: Mr.. a Crooks report
ed this He said he52had examined t .is
! engine but had done nothing to make the
| steaming any better: tire engine was sent
/ to the wards some time in JanuarE:s'l II
| vas not steamng freely when 1t came
| the engine had been running under TINS
| number for twelve or fifteen months
prior to this time it was NO GA
j 81 have never examined the boiler o.
engine No. So said Mr. johnson; &c
/ not consider myself an expert on exam
| ina ton of boilers In explaining tbs
/ different methods of determining the
/ soundness of a boiler and for testing FOL
/ broken stay-bolts, Mr.: johnson said there
we're three ways. 1.-THE hydraulic air. tlls
Ihammer and sometimes by drilling Ths
hammer test is generally regarded as
/ safe one. y
He said further: IT think by the ham
mer use or test the broken stay-bolt:
found after the boiler had exploded coule
i have been detected. I have examined the
i firc-box CT the engine since the explosion
l including the crown shut and side shut
and found, I think q broken stay
| belts, old breaks. There is solid }buncf
broken over of probably fifteen niche:
/ long. by not quite twelve lnches VIDE II
| thu, same shut y
i The witness said that the engineer wa:
not required, as a part of his duty. to 90
into the cre-beX of his engine or to ties
| the broken stay-bots. In concluding hi:
/ evidence he said that because an engine
/ was steaming badly was no indication
i that it was in bad repair or in an unsafe
! or dangerous condition. This engine
i
run as an extra, but for some time hae
been running regularly
/ WAS NOT UNSAFE.
| Mr.. George Paul. machinist and engi
4 neer. testified on cath that he had seer
i the wrecked engine and that he did mo-
consider from what he saw that the boiler
Was safe. 81 am positive he said tina
/ there were twenty-five stay-bolts tina
were broken before the explosion
Mr.. c. II. Sharp. superintendent Of the
i City Water Works, of Manchester, sale
he could not determine whether the bolts
! were broken before the wreck or not
Mr.. w. Fl. Dickerson. an engineer Of
twenty-five or thirty years experience
said he found twenty-seven broken bolts
! which he believed had been broken be,
fore the explosion. One of the hangers
| on the crown sheet was broken and il
was an old break The broken bolts were
in space Of eight or nine inches. and he
said he believed that the ones which were
broken already gave away first.
Mr.. r. II. Simmons. a machinist, saic
!, no ,e;,,a