Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1905-05-12

number OF newspaper men to make thf!
statement.
Early Thursday morning persons who
ESCAPED from the wreck began fiockins
to the newspaper offices asking that II
De published that they escaped without
INJURY to save their friends anxiety.
Samuel Shubert of New York, man.
lager of the Lyric theatre jumped out OF
his berth and ran out OF the train jus,
IN time to escape being burned to death
He was taken to the Commonwealth
hotel.
At 4.3O o'clock in the morning the first
two bodies Of those who were pinned in
the wreckage, were recovered. They
were so badly charred that they could
not be recognized but it is believed they
were women.
While the fire was still raging fierce-
ly the burning bodies could be seen still
lying in the berths.
| The entire passenger train of nine
cars and the engine were destroyed and
three others derailed and wrecked
| Inc passenger train, Of which not a
valuable square foot was left had con-
sisted of one lOcomotive--torn to pieces
when the explosion occurred; six Pull.
man sleeping caches. :wo baggage cars
one mail coach and one engine tender.
The first explosion heard was that of
the boiler Of the passenger locomotive.
This was followed by q most terrific
noise when the dynamite car went up,
The car was No. 1883 of the Erie rail!
road and had a cargo of 5OOO pounds of
dynamite.
! Despite the narrowing occurrences.
there were early on the scene. unde-
| tered. many negroes and foreigners,
| searching for loot. The heat was so in
| tense and the crowd of reputable peo-
| pie so great that it is believed they
| secured little Of value.
| The Harrisburg police almost to a
| man was at the scene of the horror
and they were largely responsible for
| prevention of the work of the ghouls.
| Even the day officers turned out in uni
| form and assisted with the work.
| Col. Jos. Il. Hutchinson. chief of po-
| lice. was on hand early and directed
his men. They carried injured from the
temporary hospitals to the relief trains
and were of inestimable assistance in
| Il great many ways.
| Steelton citizens lent their aid in the
4
| panies were early on the scene. going
! valiantly to the aid of the Harrisburg
trench. The railroad tracks were COW
cred with debris. both passenger and
| freight. four in number.
| Practically all of the glass in WIN
| dOws III South Harrisburg and Steel
ton was broken by the force of the ex-
| plosion. Most of the downstown side
walks were literally covered with brok-
en- glass. Glass windows OH Market
| street, one mile from the scene Of the
disaster. were broken.
The first special train brought &C
| injured to the hospitals and about 20
| on the second train. Delivery wagons
| automobiles and a StceltOn fire engine
brought between 20 and 80 to the hos
pital and the city patrol wagon q.
| Twenty more were brought on troll
| ley cars and were carried a block to
| the institution on stretchers. The
| strctchers ran out and shutters were
| torn off of houses and utilized to carry
| the injured.
After those whose injuries would per-
nit lad been sent away from the hos
pital there We're fully 100 left.
Many Of Harrisburg's wealthy citi-
| Zens sent their equpages to carry the
| bleeding injured and sent great guam
| titles of cotton and linen bandages.
Some who resided near the hospital
sent their best table linen.
Hundreds of people less able rem
dercd just as acceptable service.
| The rcscuing parties took eight
bodies from the debris between SIS and
$50 O'Clock. The corpses were so bad
| ly charrcd that it was impossible to
| tell whether they were those Of men or
| women.
| When a special train arrived by way
of the Cumberland Valley Railroad
tracks. which run to the side of the
hospital. A. Zironi and his wife. Ital-
| ians from New York. hobblcd into the
building crying loudly for their lost
child who. it is believed was killed
| i'm the wreck. Goth were burned and
cut about the face and hands. but cried
| only for their child. while the nurses
| and physicians were dressing their
| painful wounds.
Many injured persons. who had
| awaited for some time their turn to re-
| ceive treatment, when they saw per-
sons in worse plight than theirs. re-
| signed their places and went out into
| the corridor again.
4 Pittshurg man named Williams,
| Who had bound up his own injuries
| which consisted of burns of both hands
and feet, left the dispensary for the
others and while standing in the hall
| tainted from exhaustion.
Mr.. and Mrs. Tindell, the latter Sen.
| Kncx's daughter, were on their way to
| Pittsburg from New York. After the
crash they hurriedly left the car in
which they were sleeping and walked
along the tracks to the home of
fricnG where they telephoned to Gov.
| rennypacker.
Among the injured not expected to
recover are George Seigler and Victor
Crabbe Of Pittsburg.
The body of Mrs. Robert Dougherty
| of Philadelphia. was the first to be re-
| covered. She was hurled away from
| the debris instead of into it and her
| body was not burned.
On the train were her husband and
their little boy. They hunted for long
time in the dark and finally found the
| hO1y.