The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-05-04
Many Others Are Injured, but the Very
Density of the Crowd Saves Many
from a Horrible Death.
TRAGEDY ENDS A DAY OF JOY
POLISH LANCERs, OF TOLEDO, HAD
VISITED THEIR COMPATRIOTs.
Scene of Terror When the Big Engine
Psowed Through the Wall of HUI
manity-DetaiIs of the Disaster.

night were waiting to board an excursion
train for their homes in Toledo after a
holiday spent in Detroit, a fast passenger
train on the Grand Trunk Railway crashed
into the crowd and killed at least seven
persons and injured many others.
The Dead
MRS. HELEN PALICCA. Toledo.
FRANK ROSINSKI. Toledo.
WATSON LUDwICK, Toledo.
YOUNG WOMAN, unidentified.
MAN. unidentified
TWO BOYS, unidentified.
Severely Injured
MIKE BROSKI. fractured shoulder.
JAMES ROWLACZK, back injured.
PETER ORGHORSKE, shoulder broken.
MRS. ORGHORSKE, cut about face.
TWO CHILDREN of the Orghorskes. one
ten weeks old, the other three years old,
cut about head and body.
MARY SHAFRAINSKI. cut about body.
JOHN MALKOSKI. fractured left leg.
JOSEPH vAKRZISKI. cut about head
JOSEPH PICARD, compound fracture Of
leg.
JOSEPH sHAFRAINsKI. injured about
head.
The day had been spent merrily by the
members of the Polish Lancers of Toledo,
and the hundreds of men. women and chill
dren were packed in close quarters at Can
field and De Quindre streets soon after
dark While. the people laughed and
talked of the pleasant day enjoyed, the
heavy train turned curve and bore down
on the human mass in the darkness. The
headlight gave a momentary warning, but
the people were crowded and so fright
ened by the rumble of the wheels. the
mir ofoa M md he
ing Of the expeditiously-applied airbrakes
that escape from the track was precluded.
With a thud, smothered by the human OBJ
struction and supplanted to a degree by
the screams of the dying and injured. the
huge locomotive plowed through the
throng. throwing men. women and children
to either side of the track. The very
density of the crowd saved many lives. it
is said. because the victims were hurled on
human cushions.
The engineer brought his train to a
stand as soon as possible and the police
began to remove the dead and injured.
All the dead and injured are thought to
live In Toledo. The death-list includes four
men. one woman and two boys.
The Toledo excursion arrived this morn
ing over the Lake Shore & Michigan South
ern Railroad. The excursionists were met
by a number Of local Poles and Polish
societies, who escorted the visitors to ST.
Josephat's Church. An entertainment was
held later at Harmonic Hail. About s
O'Clock the visitors began to gather at the
corner OF Canfield and De Quindre streets
to take their train to Toledo. Both the
Lake Shore and Grand Trunk tracks run
out from the Brush-street station on De
Quindre street. Four policemen stood at
the corner OF Garfield and endeavored to
keep the excursionists from crowding
through the gates into the track. Despite
their efforts hundreds crawled under or
over the gates and walked down the dark
tracks to await the arrival of their train
which could be seen coming slowly up from
the station. Probably 1.5oO persons were
scattered along the tracks for two blocks
waiting to board the Lake Shore excur-
sion train and secure seats. 1t was only
q few blocks away down the track. creep
ing carefully along.
Suddenly from out of the darkness came
the Grand Trunk Chicago and New
York express. known as the Amer
the mass of people. throwing them to both
sides of the track bruised and MANNED. and
wheels.
Patrolman Fred Schultz. John Synda.
and numbers OF others who were at the
crossing. assert that the flyers whistle
Was not sounded and that the bell was not
rung. Four OF the dead were killed out
right by the train and the others died after
being taken TO the hospital. The tracks
are dark below Garfield street and lanterns
had TO be brought into use to find all the
victims. A neighboring coal office. several
neighboring houses and the gateman' s
of he ing rnnA ter,
rary hospitals and the wounded were car
ried into them until the ambulances ar
rived few minutes later Every am
bulance in the city was called to the
scene and the injured were soon under the
care OF surgeons in the hospitals
Patrolman Schultz, who was of the
officers on duty at the crossing, said:
I've made every effort possible to keep
the people of the tracks. but it was i'm
possible. There were 1,500 excursionists
going back TO Toledo. and twice that num-
Der of Detroit Poles were at the crossing to
see them of. Those behind pushed and
showed the foremost ones. and they crawled
under the gates. which were properly down,
or jumped over them, despite our best ef-
forts There was no warning whatever OF
zise approaching Grand Trunk train. Nc
whistle was blown. and the bell was not
ringing. i should think that l000 was a
small number for the people who were on
the tracks for two blocks trying to be
among the first aboard the Lake Shore
train and thereby secure seats for the
homeward trip. The Grand Trunk train
came out OF the darkness up the track like
a meteor and was through the crowd al
most before realized what had happened
terrible cry went up from those who had
witnessed the accident and rescuers
swarmed down the tracks. The cries and
means Of the injured guided us In the
search and we picked them up from both
sides OF the track for two blocks Some of
the sights were too sickening to describe .
George Bardeil. gateman at the Canned
crossing. insists that the gates were down
A cry for vengeance went up from the
Dofes "a soou as they realized uha