The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1903-12-18
KIMBA.I, SOUTH DAKOTA FRIDAY, DECEMBER Is. 1908

BAD MILWAUKEE WRECK
Engine Crashed Into a caboose Where
Six Men We're Sleeping and
None We're Hurt
Mitchell Republican,: Five miles
east of Alexandria at 4:3o o'clock
this morning occurred bad wreck
on the Milwaukee road in which
an engine was ditched and practically
demolished and five cars were consum-
ed by fire while six men had mirfo,,r.-
lous escape from instant death. on
The engine on the regular freight,
No. 95, had become disabled at
point five miles east of Alexandria
during the night and the crew stopped
there about two hours to fix it. Fail.
ing in this Conductor Penrose decided
to cut the train in two and send it on
to Alexandria. After the engine
reached within mile Of the town it
was again disabled and that much of
the train was left at that point.
The engine came on to Mitchell and
another engine was sent back to bring
in the rest of the train. 1t was then
that the conductor discovered what
had happened.
Two brakemen were left to guard
the train and had they followed the
rule Of the company they would have
gone back the distance of a mile at
least and placed torpedoes on the
track to warn an approaching train.
This they failed to do and for their
negligence tney nearly lost their lives,
those of four passengers, besides
wrecking an engine and five freight
cars. The six men went to sleep in
the caboose and without the first
warning Of the approaching danger
the extra freight came along and
crashed into the car. 1t was split wide
open and wrecked beyond all possible
ity Of repair. The men in the car
were thrown some distance down the
embankment and after they had got
themselves together it was discovered
that none of them were injured, with
the exception of one of the brakemen,
who was Slightly bruised in one or
two places.
W. r. Thomas was one Of the travel
ing men who came back to Mitchell
at noon and in conversation with
him he stated to The Republican that
they did not have the slightest
| tion Of the impending danger. They
were all asleep in the caboose, and
were awakened by being thrown
Through the air. They crawled out
Of the wrecked caboose with injuries
of no importance whatever. 1t was
one Of those miraculous escapes, he
said, that one reads of but is rarely a
participant in. The only reason he
can assign why the brakeman did not
put torpedoes on the track was that
there was SO few night trains or
this division that they did not
think it necessary to take any pre-
caution.
The engineer on the approaching
freight said that when he was tW'
hundred yards away he saw th
glimmer of the four red lights on th
end of the caboose, but that it wa
impossible to get his train under con
!. troll in that short distance. He re
versed his engine and the enginee
and the fireman jumped for thei
lives.
Immediately after the caboose wa
struck the fire from the stove sprea
among the broken pieces of wood an
it soon was ablaze. The fire caugl
on box car that was loaded wit
merchandise and from there it wer
to a car loaded with posts and theE
two cars Of coal. In a short time thel
was quite large conflagration goin
on with no way to stop it, and it b;
been burning the greater part Of tt
day.
Just as soon as daylight approac
ed the trainmen routed out son
farmers in the vicinity of the Wret
and with there teams hauled abol
fifteen cars out of range Of the 9th
burning cars.
At an early hour this morning
e wrecking crew was sent out
Mitchell to clear the track. The ca
passenger was sent around by tt
way of Scotland to get back on
division at Marion Junction. 1t is e
, pected to have the wreck cleared
: thatth train can come from the ea'
2 but II not it will be sent via Scotlar
The Latest
500 Critics Several people in Sio
4 Falls are in receipt Of a novelty
the divorce line. A certain eastern
5 who, presumably, IS in the northw