The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1903-01-29

appears to be woman, and there is
some doubt whether the body is that
of woman.
Immediately after the. crash, three
of the shattered cars of the local train
took fire, rendering impossible the
rescue of many of the injured who
were pinned fast in the wreck. Many
bodies are believed to have been con.
sumed.
On board the flyer all the passengers
but one, although badly shaken up, es-
capped uninjured except for trif1ing
bruises.
The dead so far identified are:
EDGAR WILLIAMS.
C. P. THAYER.
HARRY G. HAND.
HARRY PATTERSON.
GEORGE T. RED.
THOMAS CUNNING.
ROWLAND CHANDLER.
EDWARD FLYNN.
In addition to this list there are
many charred bodies unidentified still
at the scene of the wreck.
Was a Rear-End Collision.
The train which was run into left
New York at 5:45 and runs express to
Round Brook making .stops at Eliza
beth, Westfeld and Plainfeld. Beyond
Bound Brook it runs as local. The
Royal Blue train left fifteen minutes
later, but travels at a higher speed
and makes no stops except at Eliza
beth and is scheduled to overtake the
slower train just beyond Graceland,
where the latter switches from track
3 onto track 4 to permit the Royal
Blue to pass.
During the evening a freight train
was blocked on track 4, and the local
received orders to proceed on the eX-
press track to Dunellen and there take
the outside or No. track. Shortly
after receiving orders, the train had to
stop for hot box, which delayed her
SO that when she got under way again
she was due at Dunellen. She had just
started and was moving slowly, when
the Royal Blue, travelling apparently
at full speed, which at that point usu-
ally approximates sixty-five miles an
hour, crashed into the rear end.
The heavy engine of the. Royal Blue
tore it's way into the rear car and at
the same time drove the forward end
Of that car into the rear end of the
car ahead, which in turn was driven
into the third car, and this in turn was
driven into the fourth car from the
rear. The fourth car was only partly
wrecked, but the last three were torn
to pieces.
The engine of the Royal Blue left
the rails and turned over on her side,
the engineer and fremen sticking to
their posts and going down in the
wreck.
Passengers on the flyer say the
engineer applied the brakes hard a
minute Or so before the wreck. The
train ahead had sent fagman back,
but it seems he was recalled when the
train got under way, and, although he
left torpedoes, the Royal Blue did not
heed them or else was going too fast
to stop in the short distance remain
ing. The man who went back to flag
the train had just swung onto the rear
end of his train and is among the
dead. The engine and the three worst
wrecked cars were
Piled Into an Awful Heap,
containing at least 100 dead and in
jured. From the mass came fearful
cries for aid. A minute later the
wreck caught fire from the firebox of
the locomotive. The screams of the
injured in the heap were intensified as
they found thmselves hemmed in, by
the flames.
The passengers in the two forward
cars of the first train and all the men
from the express and every one in the
neighborhood started to work at once
ito get out the injured before the flames
could reach them. At times while toll
ing in the wreckage, the flames
reached the rescuers and their cloth
ing took fire, but they worked on, al
though in constant danger of being
killed themselves. Some of the injured
were burned to death in sight of the
1len who were working with despera-
fion to save them, but the flames soon
gained complete mastery of the last
two cars. II
The firemen from Westfeld were
summoned by telephone, but arrived
too late to save many lives.a Doctors
were called from Elizabeth, Westfeld
and Plainf1eld, and there was a score
on hand. The parlor cars of the Royal
Blue train were converted into tenn
porary hospitals. The dead as they
were taken out were laid in row
alongside the track until means could