The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-01-24
LET EVERYBODY HAVE JUSTICE.
Wreck at Morrisville Said Not to be Due
10 Rotten Cross Ties.

To the EditOr:-Thcrc appeared 4
news item in your paper of 18th inst.
claiming train No. 172 was wrecked at
this place on account of rotten cross
ties, also an editorial in tOday'S paper
commenting upon it, together with the
Walnut Creek wreck. You have evil
IDENTITY been badly misinformed as to
the cause of the wreck here. and con-
dition of track. The particulars are
these: An arch bar 10 front truck
broke under car near middle OF train
at cross over switch just west of sta
| ton, this let car down causing same
| to uncouple from front part of train
near wheels The broken truck
| jumped track and ran past depot to
east switch opposite Sheriff Pages
house on the field where they began
| to pile up. 1t was 1850 feet from
where Car jumped track 10 point where
| it went down the till All the nine
wrecked cars piled up in space of 40
| feet: completely knocking the ties OUT
| of the track, also breaking the large
steel rails in three to five pieces and
bending the broken parts up like bar
rel hoops.
Rotten ties was not the cause of 1t.
| Not Il new tie had to be put in the
| whole distance the cars ran on cross
| ties until point was reached that the
whole track was demolished. After the
! >
| there and did no damage TO track 1T
/ every railroad in North Carolina not
| all until they reached the frog at east
| switch which threw the trucks diago-
nany across the track and the momen-
tum OF train carried the derailed car
ahead. and this truck wedging in track
| threw others cars off. II this east
switch had not been there the car
| would have remained in running posi-
/ ton on cross ties and no wreck Would
| have occurred further than deraii-
ment OF car with broken truck as the
emergency brake applied automatical-
| ~ when trains first parted and would
| have been stopped in less than 500
| feet. If the track had been laid with
steel ties it would have been torn up.
after the heavy laden cars began pill
ing up.
! At point of wreck the track had to
| be laid with both new timber and rail.
which Is i regular occurrence at any
| wreck Of any consequence regardless
of whether ties are sound or rotten.
| l venture to assert there is not road
! in Ncrth Carolina today that has one
solid mile of track free from rotten
ties, unless it was built in the last two
years Let everybody have justice.
| Yours truly.
| j. H. MORING.
| (The News and Observer printed the
news upon the authority of one of the
ATTEST LAWYERS in the legislature. who
was on the passenger train that day
and saw rotten cross ties. Mr.. Moring
thinks there are rotten cross ties on
! built within two wears. If that is true.
! it ought not 10 be true. Particularly
the State ought not TO permit it upon
road in which it owns thr2efourths
of the stock and which it leased to
company that last year. after paying
| rent and taxes. made net profit OF
nearly seven hundred thousand dollars
without the investment OF cent
| At the Walnut Greek wreck there
| were a few who said the wreck was
| not caused by the rotten ties, but
| those few gave technical exp anattonS
which may or may not have had some
bearing, but the truth is that rotten
! ties were so numerous that every per-
son there nlarvellei tyiat wrecks had
not occurred before and that any life
was saved at the Walnut Creek ratas-
/ trophe.
The State ought to see to it that the
lives of the travelling public are pro-
tected and have an examination Of all
railroads SO that wrecks carrot oc-
cur where rotten ties abound, even II
! some people think they are caused by
| some other reGson.-EditOr.)