Rogue River courier. (Grants Pass, Or.) 1886-1927, 1904-03-17
TROUBLE AT WALL-CREEK
S. r. Co. Experiences Difficulty
in Keeping Track Clear

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the Southern Pacific railroad is a
continual source Of worry and expense
TO the company and this year is un-
usually so, as the following items
t ken from the Ashland Tidings Of
March 10, would indicate:
A sleeping car on No. Is was de-
rallied Wednesday at Wall Creek, and
caused delay Of two or three hours
to the train.
Superintendent Fields and Master
Mechanic Younger arrived in Ash
land, Tuesday, and went over to Wall
Creek to study the threatening con-
ditions there along the railroad line
Wednesday nights storm has made
conditions at the "sink hole" at Wall
Greek more threatening. Wednesday :
No. l6, due to arrive here at 8 :55 p
M, did not reach Ashland until
nearly o'clock Thursday morning
and No 12. due Thursday morning at
3 80, did not arrive until after noon
The officials are using the utmost
care to prevent accidents, and so far
nothing materially worse than delays
to travellers have occurred.
BY clever and efficient work on the
part Of the Southern Pacific wrecking
crews, under the direction Of Road
master L. G. Mccoy, the break on the
line south Of tunnel 49, on the SiskI-
yOus, was repaired so that trains were
able to pass over it Wednesday at mid
night Insetad Of attempting to f!l
the yawning cavity underneath the
rails, the roadmaster removed the
section Of track to solid ground, 30
feet to the westward, and in place
Of 81 hours interruption, a. at first
expected the passage Of TRAINS was
resumed within 10 hours
Six cars of train No 1856 were de.
rallied at Wall creek about l. o'clock,
Monday night The train, which
consisted of 277 cars, most of them
loaded, was in charge of Conductor c.
S Inglerook and Engineer Heblig,
and was feeling its way very cautious
ly down the grade, or the damage
might have been serious The train
had passed the "sink hole. +" which is
on the upper track at Wall creek, and
was on the lower section, when six
cars about the middle Of the string
toppled off the rails without any ap-
parent reason. 1t was found later
that pair Of trucks under one of the
cars had been running over the ties,
for some distance before. and when
tho switch at Wall creek was en-
countered, the car partially on the
track caused the other five to leave
the rails. None Of the cars were up
ret.
No sooner had the Southern Pacific
wrecking force got the slide at Wall
creek under control so as to allow
the passing Of trains, when a most
disastrous landslide occurred at the
sonth entrance of tunnel 10, just the
other side of Siskiyou, which has
paralyzed freight traffic for the time
being. At the point named, there is
a section Of roabded which has given
the officials any amount of trouble
and cost the company thousands Of
dollars. Beneath the surface there is
a strata Of shale or slaty stone, and
the continual rains had so saturated
the surface earth that Wednesday
morning it dropped down the mount
ain side and underneath the railroad,
leaving the rails aud ties high up in
the air The extent of the slide is
100 feet long and 80 feet deep North
bound train l2 and southbound No
II were held up on each side Of the
slide, and the passengers, mail and
express on those trains, as we'll as
later ones Wednesday, had to be trans.
ferred. No. If came back from Sis
kiyou as No l2 and did not leave
Ashland for the north until about
noon Wednesday, Southern Pacific
Lineman G.. II Hedberg went over
to the slide Wednesday and set up a
temporary telegraph office.