Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-02-16
ALEXANDRIA |||]' AFFAIRS
~ 4 e =
.Y--
Story Of the Wreck on
c.,oathern Railway.
TWO DEATHS RESULT
RoanEN INJURED.
Suspicion That the Train Was Derail-
ed by Some Unidentified Person
With Malicious. Intent.
TWO DEATHS RESULT
Evening Star Bureau.

Evening star Bureau.
80 70 7O1 King street.
Bell phone 1O6,
ALEXANDRIA, Va, February 10. 1903.
The Southern Railroad Company officials
in this city are investigating the wrecking
OF southbound passenger train No. 80. the
New York and Florida express. which oc-
CURED at 1918 Sunday morning at Ravens
worth, ten miles south Of this city. in which,
Engineer Thomas Purvis of this city and
his colored fireman. Walter Wigginton of
Charlottesville, were instantly killed and
V: P. Hammer and N. w. Borden Of Wash
ington. railway postal clerks. severely in
jured. From the information now in the
hands of the railroad authorities the opin-
ion Is expressed that the wreck was the re-
suit of malicious design instead of an acct.
dent. Train No. 33 left this city an hour
and fifty minutes late It was travelling
rapidly around the curves near Ravens
worth when the locomotive left the main
track. ran out on q blind switch and jump
ed the rails. the engine, tender, mail and
express cars .plunging down steep en-
the lower part of the engine was buried
deep in the earth. Both the engineer and
fireman stuck to their posts. They were
crushed In the cab by the impact of the
after-coming tender and were covered with
coal. Their bodies were badly mangled
Passengers were severely shaken up, but
no one was seriously injured.
Soon after the wreck occurred the 1nrOr-
nation reached this city from Burkes sta
ton. two miles north of the scene: where 1t
was carried by John Morris OF this place,
racuions escane He was riding on the en-
CINE and jumped1 in time to save his life.
AS soon as he could gather himself together
he ran at breakneck speed down the track
to the telegraph office at Burke's having
only sufficient strength remaining upon MS
arrival there to gasp that No SO had been
wrecked af RayensWorth He then lapSed
into a semi-conscious condition, from which
It was impossible for some time to arouse
him. x
Story Wired to Alexandria.
is ~. onar.t ~. uy,re/7
LUIS hneaseF S.aeen' 'e
to Alexandria. but the story was ciouoeo
In doubt at drst because 1t was thought
that the n39ne might have been In an ire
..,.1o S0sA.S,, -, ha ro,otex7 u IA
spoisiole sY1iAsNH9gn VIZ NO :. ~.
soon as fhepmessage was feceiseo a. III.
local office preparations were made to SEND
q wreckinG ntratn out to the scene. Shortly
after O. clock Is train was dispatched, car
ryiny the usaair crew, DR.. NJ W. OBrien.
the local surgeon Of the company, DR.. Ar
thur Snowden and Policemen Ferguson and
Lyles of the local force. It was about Z
o'clock in The morning before the wreck
was cleared AWAY and traffic resumed
The Inflated train consisted Of engine 3S2
one mail car,-.an express car, one day
coach and three sleepers. At the point
where the wreck occurred there Is q deep
ditch on one side and high embankment
on the, other It was into this ditch that
the engine nl,,need ca irving the mail and
exnress cars. hut the sleepers and day
coach did not, leave the rails. When the
train roundsdsths curve 39st norm Sl ia
1880 th III shefsxifeb lights were absent.
He might have jumped and saved his life.
but instesdrhe did everything IN his power
to stop the. etIain,1 as MS engine sAo"eu
"nen- sAa .nnasano, hrotas bod haan ann,,ed
ond the throttle had been closed, but the
reverse bar was in running condition, show
ing. 1t is stated, just how~zmuc the engl-
neer haa peen aD.s 20 anSoiaoh ~ ..,e
eo,,a lime hefore his body and that Of his
1ran,.n were recovered from under the coal
-. - 1870 ond ~ NO. Of 6rs+ atatad that
an ,,ao x.on ssmniv missing AS. the mail car
ne. ~ arL tho occuna nts were thrown
to1.ntiy orainst the sides of the car and
u,sre hnr,ed hack again as the car turned
ms ~ aer RorIan snstainnd badly
PC: orm ond was bruised all over the
s'aai 4o,o1per his comnanion. was even
Dosy LalI4a' re no sarionsiv cut about
tbn fona anh n ia said Sustained a con-
the race. ahu ,,nois Tnr,s, y, The r,ornine
cusSaon " - ~ wara carr,ad 70 wa shiny
-. lug ~. and tha hoilaas Of the dead engineer
.od a en- uere brought to this CITY. The
anu -. o. 90 'ftha, 1ay Coach contajnine a
SteePeIs az - nassanoara u,era hroupht
n iAise =. nu this citv in the eariv morning and
pacA ~ el.lS -. 49, at+aohad - On o,,tpoinp
Tho aScapa NJ the mas
soulnpounu 'maryalous Many NJ them
sen n =, thair herths when the wreck oc-
,snrad ond bevond q severe shaking up
cuIieu 60 IN ,Irv
hone =
officers investigating.
oeo.r. t,era1,sen and Lyles made what
oo -,s :. ,,,,o.t,.ota +ha sto+a-
enorts tney ceuiu ~ in'es.,eo.o '"e
ments that the wreck was the result Oh oe-
sign. Morris, the man who carried the news
20 purka,s station. told them what he knew
=. :. - ;.,ss star- he stated that he lived in
OK the u1eA 49,. ..,, nooo.tI-
Alexandra anu nau oeei. uii.A
fireman in the employ OF the southern rah-
road He was riding on the engine at the
ona mos severely stunned by the fall
~ slAA racaivad As soon as he recovered suf-
fciently to collect his thougnts ne ran 10 10
re statio 3nb,ch was Closer on the north be-
cause he believed there was danger OF
wrecking a train coming I, from .ne SOUTH TN,
The wreckea u ,hn aya,,,ine S the switch a
ouc'oo ,,,,tss q Ger the derailment. He found
that tie lock with which it should have
been secured was missing. and II Is stated
that II mas n.y. ~ go. d;son,,srad audiences of
thought that~he HaO OlScoVSIeo SSAoohceS ".