The Savannah morning news., 1903-12-28
DEAD
IN THE GREAT WRECK ON THE
PERE MARQUETTE.
INJURED ARE THIRTY-EIGHT.
MOST DISASTROUS WRECK IN THE
ROiD's HISTORY.

To No Negligence of Man, But to the
Work of the Blizzard, which
Blew Out the Red Signal Light,
the Wreck Was Due-Dispatcher
Knew the Fast Trains would Meet,
and Could Only Prepare to Send
Aid to the Injured-Awaited the
Inevitable.
Grand Rapids, Mich, Dec. 27.-To-
night the death list resulting from the
head on collision between two Pere
Marquette Railroad passenger trains
near East Paris. early yesterday even
in stands at twenty-five, with thirty
eight persons injured, several of
them probably fatally.
1t was the nest disastrous wreck in
the history of the Pere Marquette sys--
tenn, and instead of being caused by
mans carelessness or mistake. is
charged to the high wind which ex-
tinguished the red signal light on
the order board" at McCords sta
ton, where the westbound train was
expected to stop, and receive new or
ders. Two minutes before the train
rushed by McCords the light was burn
ing, says the operator there, but in
that brief interval the blizzard that
was raging extinguished it, and train
No. 5 flashed by the station to crash
into eastbound train No. 6, near East
Paris.
The trains, which were two of the
finest on the system, were reduced
to a promiscuous pile of broken and
twisted timber. and metal. with dead
and injured pinned down and crush
ed by the fragments of the heavy cars.
Five cars. and two large locomotives
were jammed into a space ordinarily
occupied by three coaches. and the
wreckage was strewn across the rail-
road right of way from fence to fence.
Then Awaited the Inevitable.
When train No. 5, bound west, whiz-
zed past by McCords, instead of stop
ping it the frightened operator notified
the dispatcher and then found that his
red light had been extinguished. He
reported this fact, and then there was
but one action to take. The collision
was inevitable. The dispatcher's office
called for medical aid and gave or
ders to hold the train over the Sagi-
nav branch at the depot and get the
wrecking outfit under steam. They then
waited for the word they knew must
come.
There was no chance for the fast
running trains to see each other through
the driving blizzard or to even slow
down, and in a few minutes word came
from the conductor of No. that they
had crashed together and that there
was an awful loss of life.
The west-bound engine, No. 397, drove
through No. 6's engine like a wedge,
separating the gear from the boiler
and standing the latter on end like d
broken, twisted shell. The running
gear was crumpled up like so much
Irvine. The very force of the twisting
impact seems to have been the means
of saving the life of Engineer Water
man. He was flung forty feet over the
fence at the edge of the right-Of- way.
Moon, his fireman, was sitting on the
opposite side of the cab, and he, too,
was thrown clear of the pile of wreck
age.
AS the trains came together the
steam domes of each boiler blew off,
releasing their contents, else there
would have been added horrors from
the blistering steam.
No. 6, east-bound, was composed of
a mail and baggage car, combination
smoker, buffet parlor car, day coach
and diner. 1t was at the rear end of
the smoker and forward end of the
cafe that all the passengers were killed
f,ai,s e1xr
square the bodies of two women, a
boy and a man were taken out.
Ran to Help the Injured.
The westbound flyer, with its heavy
bulkheaded cars, stayed on the rails,
back Of the baggage and mail cars, and
the passengers in this train escaped
serious injury. AS one man they rush
ed out of the train to assist the less
fortunate ones on the train from this
city. Many stripped warm overcoa is
from their backs and covered the suf-
fering injured as they were borne to
the less shattered cars of No. ). and
into the remains of the parlor car of
No. 6. Nearby farmers, hearing the
crash, turned out with blankets and
did valiant service.
According to statements made by
officials of the Pere Marquette, the
westbound train was travelling down
grade at the rate of sixty miles an
hour. The eastbound train was going
up the hill at the speed of fifty miles
an hour. The former carried about
seventy-five passengers, while the lat
ter is said to have been carrying at
least 125 persons. The two trains COL
lided about the middle of the long,
sweeping curve, three-quarters of a
mile west of East Paris.
Father, Mother and Son Killed,
In the cafe coach of the Inflated
eastbound train, which was demolish-
ed as far back as the rear of the for
ward trucks. one of the most shocking
Of the many tragedies OF the wreck
was enacted.
Section Foreman Linden i. Baldwin,
wife and son had spent Christmas in
Grand Rapids and were returning TO
their home at Mulliken. Between the
man and wife. sitting on the top of
the car seat and playing with a bank
received as a Christmas gift, was
their little son. The crash came. and
ali three met death. A beam flying
through the air struck the child. be-
heading him. Mother. and son We're
found together on the floor Of the
cafe car by the wrecking crew, when
they penetrated into the wreck.
Gen. Supt. Smith interviewed Oper-
ator Booth at Mccords last night and
said to-day:
~ 49,, ~ raaaon IN Aotihf fta stat