The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1903-08-12
CIRCUS TRAIN WRECKED
Twenty.Three People Were Killed in the
Collision.
ENGINEER LAYS 1T ON THE BRAKES.
Two Sections Of the Train Came Together
With Fearful crash-The Victims Suffer.
ed Torture Before Death Relieved Them
Pitiful Condition Of the Wounded as Thcy
We're Taken to the Hospital

Durand, Mich. Special. air
brake on the second section OF Wallace
Brothers circus train refused to work
in the Grand Trunk railway yards here,
causing collision between the two
sections, in which % people were kill
cd and about 80 injured
An official statement issued by the
Grand Trunk road says that the air
brakes were not applied by the engineer
OF the second section, as he had claim
cd.
The circus travels in two trains OF
about thirty-fve cars each. After the
nights exhibition at Charlotte the two
trains lett for Lapeer, over the Grand
Trunk road, the second section leaving
a half hour after the first. 1t was 3.4s
O'Clock when the. first section pulled
into the west end OF the Grand Trunk
yards here. A red light was hung on
the rear car to stop the second sec
tion
Engineer Propst OF Battle Creek, who
was running the engine OF the rear
train says he saw this light, and applied
the airbrake. To his horror, it refused
to work. He reversed his engine, but
the momentum OF the heavy train be-
hind was too great, and, with a crash
that aroused all OF the town near the
yards, the second section crashed into
the first.
Three cars OF the stationary first sec
ton were teescoped, and the engine
and FIVE cars OF the moving train were
demolished.
Engineer Propst, Fireman Golfer and
Head Brakeman Benedict, who was also
on the engine OF the second section.
all agree that il the brakes had worked
there would have been no accident
The escaping steam and screams and
cries OF those pinned in the wreck made
a horriiying spectacle in the gray OF
the early morning, when the trainmcn
in the yards and the aroused townspeo-
pie first reached the scene. Many fear
ed at first that some OF the mena geric
had escaped, as some OF the animals
could be heard crying. A fire whistle
was sounded and the whole town was
aroused. The rescuers could see un-
fortunates in the tangled wreckage and
went furiously to work without waiting
for tools to eXtricate them. a wreck
ing crew is kept in the yards here and
it was on the scene in few minutes,
bringing tools and equipment in plenty.
All the physicians and trained nurses
in Durand were sent for and those i'll
nearby places were rushed to the scene
on handcars The Hotel Richclieu was
converted into a temporary hospital, and
the injured persons were taken there
as fast as the rescuers could eXtricatc
them. The dead many of them so ter
ribly mangled that identification seemed
well nigh impossible, were carefully laid
on the green sward short distance from
the scene
By o'clock corps of IL physicians
was operating on the injured and dress
ing their wounds in the temporary hos
pital Four of the injured died at the
hospital before $50 o'clock and fifth at
noon.
When the wrccking-train crews had
finished pulling to pieces the tangled and
broken cars II dead men were lying on
the grass awaiting removal to the
morgue. A minority of them were killed
while asleep.
Wallace Brothers say that their loss
was very heavy, but have given no est-
mate OF it as yet This is the second
wreck that the Wallace shows have
suffered within a month