The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1905-01-18
KILLED. IN R. R. COLLISION
Hotel Runner Disarranged Stop Sig.
nal For a Train.
SEVEN ARE KILLED OUTRIGHT

| engineer won't VI II n TAhothCE Ia1
in a Head.on wreck on tho Southern
Railroad Near Browns Crossing, ILL.,
Score OF Persons Hurt Seriously-Crew
Of One Engine Jumped.
Indianapolis, Ind. Through the
! thoughtless meddling Of a hotel runner
at the little way station at Browns
| Crossing, ILL.,, a head-on collision Of two
passenger trains occurred at an early
| hour in the morning in which seven
persons were killed, two injured nor
| tally and more than a score more or
less seriously hurt. The trains were
No. /, e%astbound, and No. =, westbound,
on the st. Louis division Of the South.
ern Railway, and the collision took
| place between Mount Carmel and
Mauds, III.
Station Agent Lindley, at Browns
| Crossing, had orders for the eastbound
train and set the red light, requiring
| the train to stop. He was on the sta
| ton platform attending to baggage.
| when the train whistled, and a hotel
| runner pulled the rope inside the sta
| ton. drawing up the red light and
| showing white. The eastbound train
| went by the station at forty miles an
| hour, while the agent Vainly attempted
to attract the attention Of the engineer.
He Immediately notified the officers
| Of the road, but he could not notify the
| agent at the next station because there
was no telegraph operator there.
Engineer Buchanan Of the eastbound
| train, knowing he was running with
| out orders, brought his train down to
eight miles an hour, after passing the
| station Of Mauds, and was feeling his
| way carefully when he saw the head
| light Of the w%estboupd train coming
| around a curve at the rate Of fifty miles
| an hour, the engineer having orders
to pass the eastbound train at Mauds.
| Buchanan and his fireman jumped just
|! as the two trains came together and
| thus escaped injury.
The impact Of the two trains was ter
rife. The cars Of the %eastbound train,
which had come nearly to standstill,
were instantly telescoped and caught
! fire. while the cars Of the westbound
| train were only ~telescoped partly and
| all the passengers escaped without Sc
rious injury. Engineer Brown and
Fireman Rutte We're both caught I'M
| der the burning train and persisted in
! agony in sight of the passengers and
| train creWS,who were poWerless to give
them aid. 4
The men passengers soon formed q
| fire brigade and carried water from
a creek near by in their hats, The in
| jured were taken care of by the. sur
| vivors and physicians were rushed to
| the scene at once. The score or more
of persons injured were in the east
bound train and their hurts were Of
| every conceivable description. AS the
| two trains came together the passen-
gers were hurled violently forward and
were piled up against the doors Of the
coaches, many, Of them so. stunned and
| bruised that they could not move. p.
Fire started and was spreading to.
| ward the passenger coaches from the
| baggage car and eating its way toward
! the injured passengers when the unin.
| jured passengers formed their fire
| brigade and succeeded in stopping the
| flames. e. e. McNeely. a newspaper
man Of Princeton, was riding on the
| engine with Engineer Brown.
Mrs. McNeely vas also on the train,
| but had refused to ride on the engine,
| having a presentiment that something
was going to happen and had tried to
| dissuade her husband from accepting
| the engineers invitation. McNeely
tried to jump from the engine when
| he saw q collision was inevitable, but
| caught his foot and did not clear the
| track. He was badly injured Eugene
Carleton, of Dale. Ind, and Ray I'm.
iderwood, Of Huntington, Ind, were in
jured mortally. and the following were
Killed outright: =
Albert P. Brown, f~orty-fve years old,
| Princeton, Ind. engineer westbound
train, killed at his post; Charles Rutte,
! Princeton, Ind. fireman westbound
train; Homer D. Hogan, mail clerk
| train No. /, Georgetown. Ind, crushed
to death in car; Henry Oskins. section.
man, Tennyson. Ind; William Under.
| wood. section foreman. Belleville, ILL.,;
| Cyrus Hudson. sectionman, Tennyson,
Ind: Charles Schmidt, coal miner, Cen.
traiia, III.