The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1904-08-09
ONE HUNDRED
Persisted
Colorado Railway Disaster d
Appalling Nature. Wreck
age Strewn -Four Miles.
THRILLING STORY BY SURVIVOR

Pueblo, Colo, Aug. 9.--The railway
disaster on the Denver and Rio Grande
road near Eden and about eight miles
from this city grows in magnitude as
the work Of investigation progresses.
1t is certain that about a hundred
persons persisted when the worlds fair
fier made its terrible plunge through
the tottering trestle into the surging
waters of Dry creek
Just four persons escaped with their
lives from the fury Of the torrent.
Three Of these owed their lives to the
fact that they were on platforms when
the disaster occurred, and the other, j..
NJ. KILN, hardware merchant of Pue-
bio, after being immersed for two min
utes in the middle of the stream.
broke through window of coach
that was being dashed about like
chip in the swirl and succeeded in
reaching land
Police and railroad officials announce
that many bodies never can be re-
moved, and it is feared that full list
OF the lost passengers never will be OBJ
tanned, as the only direct clew to their
identity was lost when J. A. Smith, the
conductor of the train, was swept away
to death. No trace Of Smiths body has
been found, and 1t is thought his pa
pers have been scattered by the tor
rent.
The worlds fair fiier is the fastest
train run by the Denver and Rio
Grande out of Denver. 1t left that city
at o'clock in the afternoon and made
the run to Colorado Springs in 2 hours
and 10 minutes, about five minutes be-
hind schedule time. One hour and ten
minutes is the running time between
Colorado city and Pueblo.
Treste Pronounced Safe.
All that day rain fell in sheets over
the mountainous country stretching
away from here toward Colorado City
So great was the danger of washouts
that the railroad management had men
keeping close watch ON every mile of
track, and two hours before the trestle
bridge collapsed two inspectors pro
nounced it safe. Forty-five minutes
ahead Of the worlds fair flier was To-
cal train. which reported here that the
trestle was safe.
Dry creek is narrow slit in the hills
that ordinarily is without drop Of
water in its entire length. But when
heavy rains come it swells to terrify-
ing proportions, sweeping trees and
powders before it with irresistible
force. 1t rose twenty feet IN the hour
before the flier reached it, and when
the monster engine dropped with the
collapsing bridge the torrent caught
the great mass of steel and carried 1t
hundred yards down stream The boil
er was torn from it's fastenings, and a
driving wheel was knocked off. The
fastenings of the tender were snapped
like paper, and the heavy truck was
found mile below the bridge.
Projecting four feet over the edge of
the gorge was one of two sleeping cars
which, with d dining car. escaped de
struction. 1t was found that the brakes
We're set fast on these coaches. and not
an inlSling of the terrible disaster was
known to the twenty-nine passengers
In the Pullmans until they alighted In
the darkness and peered over the side
of the creek into the waters rushing
along in foamy eddies over the site OF
the bridge
Brakes Found Set.
The brakes set fast on the three
coaches gave silent testimony to the
devotion of Charles Hindman, the en-
gineer, to duty. Hindman could have
saved his life by jumping just as the
engine toppled over the brink; but,
making use of the last possible second
in which he might set the brakes on
the train, he stuck to his post and was
lost.
For four miles down the narrow beds
of Dry creek and Fountain creek, OF
which the first is a tributary, bodies
and fragments Of the wrecked coaches
project from shifting banks of sand.
Many of the bodies lie buried forever
In the masses Of rocks and earth car
ried from the hills by the destructive
flood, and Of the twoscore bodies that
have been recovered Identification ID
SOHlS cases HAS DeSu LudNc w ElOtuluS
and papers found In the pockets.
The dead were disigured beyond rec.
ognition by the rushing food Heads
were crushed against rocks in the river
bed, arms and legs were shattered, and
the faces of men and women were
ground out of all regularity Of feature.
Search for bodies Is being made by 500
men. directed by Chief of Police Shoup
of Pueblo and twenty-five policemen.
Up and down the banks of the creek
hundreds of anxious relatives from this
city, Colorado Springs and Denver walk
hour after hour, despairing OF finding
relatives or friends but, hoping against
hope. they absolutely refuse to return
to their homes.
Story Of Survivor
Two hours after the first relief train
arrived group Of doctors were stand
ing at the spot where the engine went
down, when man approached, wav-
ing his arms wildly and apparently
trying TO speak His clothes were torn
in shreds, and blood was pouring from
a deep cut in bis cheeks. When the
doctors asked him who he was he
could not reply, but finally ii was
found that he was J M. KILN, the
one passenger who had fought his way
TO freedom from the coaches and es-
capped death.