The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-01-08
LIKE A FLASH.
CONTINUED from First Page.l

They had been ordered upon sup
posedly open track and had ridden into
the smashup unsuspectingly. Engi-
neer Reardon reversed the lever and
reduced the speed of his engine from 30
miles to about Is when the engines
by Coroner Sflverthorne if he saw any
members of the other train crew after
the wreck, he answered:
It walked forward and met Ben
jamin- said. My God. didn't you
have orders to meet me% Benjamin
said, No That was about all that
passed between us as he left the wreck
/ Immediately afterward.'
/ Coroner Silverthorne asked Reardon
| If he had had any conversation with
Conductor Maggie of the passenger train
1since the wreck. Reardon replied:
Il visited Nagle at the hospital"
What did he say?"
HE asked me where Benjamin was.
I told him that he was at Kansas City
but that he would come back here for
! the inquest"
What did Nagle say?"
"He said, Benjamin might as well
come back and acknowledge the truth"
In the course of taking Nagle's dep
osition last night no questions were
asked him about this statement attrib-
uted to him by Engineer Reardon.
Judging from 1t, however, Conductor
Maggie regards Benjamin as the one
upon whom the responsibility for the
wreck lay.
There appears to be a fine point to
| the question of fixing the responsible
/ ty, despite the damaging nature of Ma
minis conduct in passing the train on
the Willard siding. The second stock
| train, labeled in the dispatcher's office
as extra 1417 east" had not been al
lowed time enough by the dispatcher to
! meet passenger No. 8 either at Willard
| or at Valencia. Evidence from the Of
| flee of the train dispatcher seems to be
needed. But Coroner Silverthorne has
subpoenad no one from the dispatch
| er'S office.
DISPATCHER NOT SUMMONED.
"Why has not the train dispatcher
who was watching the trains been sub
poenaed?" reporter asked DR.. Silver
thorne-
'.It will not be necessary" he replied.
Subpoenas have been issued only for
members of the two train crews and
/ statements of but four of them have
| been taken. The remainder of the evil
dence at the inquest will be taken in
| Wabaunsee county; just where has not
been determined. Neither has the time
Such evidence as will be CLEANED from
the members of either crew can throw
but little light upon the operations III
the office of the Rock Island train
dispatcher at Topeka. What that Off
ciaI knows about the movements of the
\ trains on the night when the wreck
occurred would appear to be important
in an instance where such grave evil
dence pointed toward a minor en-
/ ployeS culpabi1ity.
I DR.. Silverthorne is in the employ OF
| the Rock Island railroad as a hospital
| surgeon at Mcfarland. He appears tC
have thus far labored under consider
able uncertainty as to the proper dis
charge of his functions as coroner. The
/ inquest was moved from Wabaunsee
/ county to Topeka, in Shawnee county
! on, p, S11ur70Sffinr had
| authority TO move the scene of his in
| vestigations. Before the resumption OF
the inquest, however, DR.. Silverthorne
| determined to move 1t back to Wa
| baunsee county. He stated Thursday
| afternoon when the jury was called To-
gether at o'clock:
You sat in Wabaunsee county yes
terday as Jury. You have been called
here today, not as a jury, but as q
board of inquiry to examine into the
causes of the wreck and to dispose OF
the remains Of the victims and of theiI
effects
examine witnesses in regard to the or
ders under which the two trains were
moving just prior to the wreck. Unless
these witnesses are again subpoenaeo
they will not appear before the jury
again. DR.. Silverthorne did not explain
under what statute the jury was giver
the interchangea capacity of an eK-
aiming board; nor did he instruct the
.
its dual capacities.
When, after a short view of the
1 wreck, the jury was ordered to adjourn
/ to Topeka to continue it's investigation
the investigation would be concluded
| here. The state law provides that the
jury shall convene Eat a time and place
named by the coroner. This would
appear to authorize the removal to TO
pelxa. The jury was ordered to assem-
BILE at 10 o'clock Thursday morning. II
did se but as only two of the witnesses
had responded to the summons an adj
journment was taken until p. m. Al
that time two more of the witnesses
had appeared and the board of in
quiry'' commenced its Investigations.
The entire list of witnesses upon whom
subpoenas had been served was as fol
lows: Engineer Reardon, Conductor
Fletcher, Fireman Frazier and Brake
men Murray and Wadsworth of the
stock train, and Engineer Benjamin
Conductor Maggie, Fireman Stoddard OF
the passenger train.
/ CONDUCTOR FLETCHER'S STORY
Conductor Fletcher Of the stock trair
/ was the first to testify. He said:
| Il was on extra stock train No. al
east. We carried the usual white signals
of an extra train. We received our las
orders at Mcfarland. 1t gave US RICH
of way over all trains as far as Willard
and meet orders at Willard. That is
we had right of way over train 81 from
Acf ar1anQ TO Topeka ana OEUSFS u
meet trains Is and 8 at Willard. TIL
wreck occurred at ITO a. m. about on
mile and three-quarters east Of Mapl
Hill"
DR.. Silverthorne conducted the ex
animation.
Did your train carry headlight?"
Yes"
Did No. have a headlight?"
Yes"
, Did you at any time see No. s's or
ders?"
No"
What was your first intimation o
the approach of No. 3?''
Il did not see the other train, al
though mistoolk the glare of the head
light for the reflection of our own head
| light 1non the rails at the Curve.