The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1902-03-14
BROKEN RAILT HECAUSE|
FRIGHTFUL WRECK ON SOUTH
ERN PACIFIC ROAD NEAR
MAxON, TEX.
TRYING TO MAKE UP TIME

Train Going at Such a Speed That the
Engine Lands seventy-five Feet
From Where It Left the Track-Fif.
teen Are Dead and Twenty-eisht In.
Iured-Debris Burns and Many Are
Cremated.
San Antonio, Tex, March ga
broken rail caused frightful wreck
on the Southern Pacific railroad near
Maxon station, 25 miles west Of San
derson, at o'clock a. m. From the
latest accounts received here Is peo-
pie were killed outright and 20 were
more or less injured.
The dead are: Three children of
Mart Riddle of Cetopak, Kan; Esta-
Won Contraras, Del Rio, Tex; Andrew
G. Shelly, wife and child, Loiror, Tex;
child of D. E. Housen, Racine, Wis;
Mr.. and Mrs. White, Manitowoc, Wis;
Engineer Al Mast, Ell Paso, Tex;
Fireman H. Bertscholst, Ell Paso, Tex;
L. A. Boone, news agent, Doyline, La;
Chris Keel, contractor, San Antonio;
W. w. Price, engineer, San Antonio.
The Inflated train left San Antonio
two and a half hours late, and at the
time the accident occurred was run
ming at high rate Of speed in order
to make up time. The road at the
point where the wreck occurred is in
a rough country, the curves being
sharp and the grades heavy. 1t was
when rounding curve that the train
left the track, it is said, on account OF
a broken rail. The hour was a. M,
Is hours after the train had left San
Antonio, showing that it was still be-
hind time. All the passengers were
asleep and the shock that followed
was the first intimation they had OF
the danger.
The train was going at such a rate
of speed that the tender and engine
landed rs feet from where they LETT
the rails. The cars behind piled up
against the engine, caught fire and all
were consumed except the sleepers.
Many of the Injured cremated.
All the injured in the coaches just
behind the express and baggage cars
were cremated. The people in the
sleepers were saved with the assist
ance of the uninjured passengers. A
private car owned by Thomas Ryan
of New York, with his family aboard,
was attached to the rear of the train,
but it was pulled away before the fire
reached it and no one in 1t was In
jured.
The wrecked train was the Calves
ton, Harrisburg and San Antonio
westbound passenger No. 9, and con-
sisted of an engine, mail car, baggage
car, one coach and chair car, three
tourist sleepers, one Pullman sleeper
and one private car.
The mail car, the baggage car and
coaches were piled together against
the engine and were ablaze in a few
seconds. It was impossible to move
any of the coaches or the tourist cars,
as they were all off the rails, and they
were soon consumed by the flames.
AS soon as it was possible to get IN
communication with the division head.
| quarters relief trains with surgeons
and physicians were started from Ell
Paso, Del Rio and Sanderson, picking
up along the line all the surgeons that
could be found.
All of the injured who were in a
condition to be moved were sent to
Ell Paso, where they are receiving
careful attention.
w. G. Van Week, general manager
of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San
| Antonio railroad, was at San Antonio
and left at once on special train FOL
| the scene of the wreck.