The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1905-06-23
TWENTY-FIVE
DIE In WRECK
Frightful Collision Occurs on the
Western Maryland Railway.
The IMPACT WAS TERRIFIC
ALI of the Killed Were Employees Of the
Road Returning TO Their Homes
to Spend Sunday.

BY far the worst wreck in the his
tory of the Western Maryland railroad
occurred Saturday evening at a point
about a quarter of mile from Pa
tapsco, a email station between West
minister and Finckburg.
The death list foots up twenty-five
and this number is likely to be in.
creased from among the list of those
grievously mangled.
Passenger train No. 5, westbound,
was running at a very high rate OF
speed when, at the point named, 1t
crashed into a double-header freight.
running east. All three OF the en-.
gines were reduced to scrap iron, the
express and baggage cars OF the pas,
senger were smashed and a number of
the freight cars we're splintered The
passenger coaches sustained little il.
jury, and almost without exception
their occupants escaped with nothing
worse than a bad shaking up.
Men Killed Were Employees.
All the dead were employees Of the
railroad company, returning to their
homes in the small towns along the
railroad to spend Sunday. With the
exception OF the train crews, they had
been at work repairing the damage
done TO the road about ten days ago
by a minor freight wreck. The train,
which was No. 5, passenger, west
hn- %
sengers, all the coaches being filed.
Consequently, as many Of the
wOrkmen as could do so went
into the baggage car, the re-
mainder of the gang Of thirty-hve
finding places on the platforms be-
tween the mail and baggage cars and
between the latter and the tender.
In the neighborhood OF Patapsco sta.
ton, about eight miles from West.
minister, the Western Maryland haN
many curves, and that just west Of
the bridge crossing the Patapsco river
is a sharp one.
An extra freight, made mp 81 heavy
coal and provision cars, was running
east II should have taken a siding
TO allow No to pass. Such were
the orders. Why they were disregard
ed will never be known, for all those
who should have seen that they we're
obeyed are dead.
The passenger train was running
thirty miles an hour, and the freight
was making good time, with the two
engines pulling It.
Just west OF the bridge they came
together with terrific force, the three
engines being piled one upon another.
The fearful impact drove the passen.
ger tender into the baggage car and
demolished II and the mail car.
HeartrendIns shrieks.
Heartrending shrieks from the in.
jured brought 10 the scene the inhab-
Itants Of all the farm houses within
a considerable radius and these imme-
distely hogan helping the victims.
Farmers wives and daughters made
bandages Of their clothing and house
hold linen and worked heroically amid
the blood and CRIME.
As fast as they could he taken
from the wreckage the dead were
placed aboard The train for Westmin-
stcr and then taken TO that town and
Blue Ridge.
The more seriouSy injured were
sent TO Baltimore At the union sta.
ton IN that city when the first train
load OF human wr"ckagc arrived Eve
patrol wagons and two aInbulances
we're in waiting. When these were
filed. express wagons were pressed
into service.
At Westminster a crowd OF a. least
a thousand people met the funeral
train, and as many % the dead had
friends and relatives In the town,
there were terrible scenes AZ the en-.
CINE house, where the bodies we're
taken and exposed for Identification.