Middletown transcript., 1903-07-25
EXPRESS TRAIN
BADLY WRECKED
Engineer and Fireman Injured
and Passengers Shaken Up

As the Norfolk express of the Pennsyl-
yania railroad was crossing the New Gas.
tie cutoff shortly after midnight Tuesday
it crashed into freight train and hurled
the engine and tender off one side of the
track and the mail coach and baggage car
were thrown to the other. The follow.
ing persons were injured:
John Beckley, engineer of the express,
of No. 622 North Van Buren, street, Will
mington, head crushed and lacerations;
probably fatally injured; body badly
burned by escaping steam; taken to the
Delaware Hospital in the patrol wagon.
A. V. Jamison, fireman of the express,
of No. 1lO1 West Seventh street, Will
mington, leg injured. Injuries not SER
ious.
William Wright, express messenger, of
No. APO Jefferson street, Wilmington, left
leg injured. Not serious.
John Mastin OF No. 713 French street,
Wilmington, mail clerk, both legs con-
fused and injured about the back.
L. B. KINNEY, of Philadelphia, mail
clerk, left arm injured and back sprained.
With the exception of Engineer Beck
ley, who was sent to the Delaware Hos.
pital, the injured were able to go to their
homes.
Engineer Beckley, who was forcing his
engine at rapid rate of speed saw the
lights of freight train crossing his track
just before reaching the intersection. He
called to his fireman to jump, but the
words were scarcely ont of his mouth be-
fore the crash occurred, the passenger
train plowing through the middle of the
freight with deafening crash and the
hiss of steam.
The engineer and fireman were thrown
from the cab and the express messengers
and mail clerk hurled against the sides
of their cars.
The force of the collision caused the
coupling to break between the baggage
car and passenger coaches and aside from
severe shaking up the passengers were
uniniured. A few seconds after the
trains came together flames shot up from
the pile of debris and there was a panic
among the passengers. Many of them,
however, soon got their heads together
and began saving the contents of the
baggage and mail cars.
French street station had been apprised
of the wreck by telephone and special
train consisting of locomotive and
combination passenger and baggage coach
was made up at the French street station.
The special train with DIR. Howard Ogle,
DIR. Draper, Detective w. 7. Jones, Police
Captain Thomas Kane, Sergeant Bayley
and others left for the scene of the acci-
dent. On the arrival of the special at
the scene of the wreck the injured were
placed on board the train and returned
to Wilmington.
In the meantime the Weccacoe and
Fame Hose companies had been sum-
moned and proceeded to the scene.
Upon their arrival the baggage and mail
coaches were enveloped in flames, the
frightful glare from which lighted up the
country for distance around.
The mail car was the first to ignite and
OF the 200 bags OF mail but two were
saved and the clothing of the mail clerks
was also destroyed. In the pocket of one
of the coats belonging to the clerk over
a hundred dollars was burned. But
little OF the baggage was destroyed as the
crew managed to get most of it out before
the flames caught the car.
The accident is peculiar in that no
cause can be given. The only theory
that was advanced was that the white
light giving the express the right of way
was out. Trainmaster Wallace Reynolds
and the wrecking crew cleared the track
and after new train was made up at
French street station the journey was
continued.