The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-07-11
SEVENTEEN ARE KILLED
 AND FIFTY INJURED
REGULAR TRAIN CRASHES INTO
 AN EXCURSION.

Manager Declares Operator in Tower Failed to Set BIock signal Against the Regular When Excursion Train stopped for Water.
 New York, July 1O.-seventeen persons were killed and about fifty were injur- ed in collision which occurred at Mid vale. N. l. just before noon to-day, when regular passenger train on the Greenwood Lake branch of the Erie railroad ran into an excursion train that had stopped to take water. All of the dead and injured live in Hoboken, Jersey City and New York. The acei- dent is believed to have resulted from a tower operator having lowered his signal too soon, and this was admitted by D. w. Cooke, general passenger agent of the Erie railroad, who gave out statement in which he said: "The operator in the tower failed to set the block signal against the train follow ing"
 The train which was run into was a special carrying members of the First PIattdeutscher association of Hoboken on their annual outing, and had 800 passengers.
 The train consisted of twelve cars and two engines. The first engine had talk en water and the train had moved up and stopped with the second engine be- side the tank. when the regular train drew near. The flagman of the special signalled the engineer of the on-coming train but owing to the curve in the road his flag was not seen until too late. It is claimed that the engineer of the reg ular train had slowed down to about ten miles an hour before he crashed into the special, but his engine tore through the rear car the greater part of it's length and drove the forward end of that car into the car ahead. The killed and injured were in these two cars.
 Fortunately the wreckage did not catch fire and the work of taking out the dead and mairned was accomplished quickly,
 The passengers from the uninjured coaches ran back and joined in the work, and the residents of MidyaIe, many of whom had heard the crash, as- sisted them.
 The seventeen dead were soon laid be- side the track and the injured were carried to the nearby houses, all of which were thrown open to them.
 While physicians were being sent for women of Midvale brought bandages and other articles that could be used in caring for the injured.
 An engine and cars were sent from Little Falls to the scene of the wreck and as rapidly as possible the most ser iously hurt were prepared for transpor- tation by train to Little Falls and thence to Jersey City or Hoboken. The less severely hurt were continued url- der treatment in Midvale until later in the day.
 All those hurt were eventually taken either to their homes or to hospitals. As quickly ais possible the officials of the road induced all who had no friend or relative killed or injured to board the first train and proceed to Green wood Lake. Those who did not care for the trip to the lake after witnessing the scenes in the two wrecked coaches were provided later with return trans- portation.
 The engineer and firemen of the reg ular train disappeared from the scene just after the accident They both es- Saped injury by jumping just before the crash.
 Tn the forward of the special train the shock of the collision was only slightly felt, and many of the passengers did not know for some time that an acci- dent had occurred.
 County Physician Mcbride took charge of the bodies and transferred them to Little Falls. There Assistant Prosecutor Ralph Shaw of Passaic county rendered the use of building as nnorgue. This was accepted as it saved the inconvenience of transferring the bodies to Paterson.
 The work of clearing away the wreck and raising the blockade on the road was not accomplished until after 4 o'clock this afternoon.
 The operator in the tower was Walter Richards. He would make no statement and was relieved and left the scene soon after the accident.
 great crowd remained at the scene all afternoon, many of whom were passengers who were seeking informa- tion regarding relatives and friends who were en the train.
 During the excitement immediately after the accident woman gave birth to q child in one Of the cars, after she had learned that her husband and one of her children were among the injured. Those killed and identified are:
 Otterstedt Henry, Hoboken.
 Weidemeyer, William, jr, Hoboken. : Rense, William, New York.
 Lemkohl, Mrs. Anna, New York.
 Lane, William, Hoboken.
 Broker, Henry, Hoboker.
 Rohfin, William, Hoboker.
 Winderknecht, William, Hoboken.
 Schveer, George, Hoboken.
 Koch, Henry Hoboken.
 Manser, Isadore Hoboken.
 Holnwelder, Frank (child), Hoboken.
 McDermott, George, Hoboken.
 Wistow, William, West Hoboken.
 Kelly, D. K, Jersey City.
 -, boy, name supposed to be Bat terson.
 Lemkol1l, Agnes (child), New York.
 The injured in hospitals:
 John Starr, Hoboken, bruised about 5aod1y o,,d y,oceiI,Jx, i1atarro1Ixy ipi,.rod