Perth Amboy evening news., 1905-05-12
Details Of the Catastrophe Which
Happened Yesterday Dyna-
mite Blew Up Train.
TWENTY PEOPLE HURT.

the Cleveland and Cincinnati express
w%estbound, on the Pennsylvania rail
road. which dashed at midnight into 4
wrecked eastbound freight train, ex
ploding a car filed with 10000 pounds
of dynamite.
1t Is certain that at least a dozen were
burned to death in the Pullmans, OF
which nothing remains but twisted
iron and ashes. Only a few pieces OF
charred bones have been found in the
wreck of two cars nearest to the ear
containing blasting powder. The total
number of injured is 1875.
The identified dead are: Jack L. Sill
verman and Mrs. Robert G. Dougher-
ty of Philadelphia. G. kaufman of Al
Pa, engineer of the passenger train;
Victor l.. Crabbe of Pittsburg. son-in-
law of Robert Pitcairn. who is assist
ant to President Cassatt of the Penn
s~ylvania road: j.. Il. Phillips of Pitts
burg. IL. s.. Watson of Clearfield. Pa,
George Zeigler. Pittsburg: Paul Bright.
Plttsburg: MIR. Shaw. P%ittsburg: Nor
ma Martina. seven months old. and
nine unidentified bodies.
SO terrible was the force of the ex-
plosion that many Of the dead could be
identified only by scraps of clothing o.
by some trinket or stray cards or let
tiers. The nine who are still unidenti-
fed will remain so il the discovery de
ponds upon any semblance of human
lily in what is left of them.
Alfred Crosby of Philadelphia, the
conductor of the Cleveland express,
who was terribly burned in the wreck,
lied late last night at the Harrisburg
hospital.
The Harrisburg hospital has treated
l06 persons. Six died, forty-four are
still in the institution, and the others
were discharged.
The Pennsylvania railroad officials
lave given out Il list containing the
names of ninety-eight persons who
were injured.
Passengers and trainmen were burn
ed to a crisp, while others We're pinned
helplessly in the debris. So complete
~ incinerated We're the bodies that
Identification was almost impossible.
The women in the wreck suffered
greatly. and many of those who escap-
ell were found almost naked.
Among those who got out without
injury were Mrs. Albert j.. Barr wife
of the editor of the Pittsburg Post, and
her two daughters. who were on their
way to Pittsburg.
Mr.. and Mrs. Tindell of Pittsburg.
the latter the daughter of United
States Senator z. G. Knox, were in
iured by flying glass. They walked
from the scene of the wreck to Steel
ton. where they called up Governor
Pennypacker by telephone and ex-
planned their condition. The governor
immediately dispatched Private Secre-
tary Bromley Wharton to the aid of
Mr.. and Mrs. Tindell. They were
brought to the executive mansion,
where they were furnished with cloth
ing and medical attention.
The primary cause of the wreck was
a shifting engine. 1t was going west
slowly when the engine driver of the
eastbound freight train saw it coming
on his track. He applied the air brakes
suddenly, which caused the middle OF
the freight train to buckle, showing
several of the cars on TO the westbound
passenger track. a mOment later the
express, one of the fastest night trains
on the road, came along and dashed
into the wrecked ears. The next in
slant the boiler of the passenger loco
motive exploded. The wreck tool fire
and those who escaped began the
work of rescue.
Six minutes after the express struck
tlled with dynamite. There was "A fash
and n d%eafenlng oar The earth trem
bled as though some terrible seismic
disturbance had occurred. All who
We're not killed or injured by the ex-
fled from the awful scene.
The entire wreckage became Il mas
Of flames, and small boxes of powder
hat had not exploded blew up coatinu.
ously. While these explosions contin-
ned men who had brnvely gone to the
rescue before the first explosion did
dare to approach the burning
though they could hear. the ago.
nizing shrieks of the dying.
Flames began to consume the human
tt.'t were llelplessly pinned in
the wreeknge.
An alarm of fire was turned in. and
when the tiremen arrived 1t was I'M
possible for them to go closer than 800
yards of the fire until the explosions
Then the intense heat inter-
fered with the work of rescue. Men of
the boldest nerve were forced to retire
with singed hair, blistered faces u
burning clothing when they attempted
TO respond TO the piteous cries for help.
Those who escaped by leaping and
crawling through windows In scant at
lire from their sleeping car berths bur
ried TO the open fields, where they
were gathered together and carried in
to the offices and workroolHs of the
Paxtang Electric Light colnpany and
other Industrial plantsI which were
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