The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1906-12-18
HEROISM Of
TWO PRIESTS
Clerics' Fortitude at Wood
vile Heretofore Buried,
Now Revealed.
FIRST ON The SCENE
Dan Kelley of Valparaiso Sends
Graphic Account to Catholic
Columbian Record.

Attorney Dan Kelley of Valparaiso,
a brother of DR.. Luke Kelly of this
city, has given an interesting article
to the Catholic Columbia Record Of
indianapolis in its last weeks Is
sue in which he draws a graphic pic
ture of the terrible wreck at Wood
VILE on the B. & o. railroad, which oc-
Cured recently. The story is es-
section as it has for it's principal fig
ures the Rev. John Berg of whiting
and the Rev. Herman Jeraschek of
Chesterton and how they offciated in
their clerical capacity for the benefit
of the victims on the scene of the
wreck.
At the time Of the wreck the Rev
John Berg of Whiting happened to be
in Chesterton. where Father Jeras-
chek was conducting forty hours de-
votion in his church.
"Awaking at APO o'clock in the
morning" says Mr.. Kelly, Father
Jerascheck noticed the glare of the
flames on the church spires, and rush
ing to the telephone, he was informed
& Ohio and that the cars were burn
ing and human beings perishing. His
duty was there He called Father
Berg, ordered his horse, secured the
Holy Eucharist sprang into his buggy.
dashed his horse into a mad gallop and
rushed through the binding storm to
the scene Of the wreck. arriving there
twenty five minutes after the crash.
when the two priests arrived the
four emigrant coaches were a mass of
. tangled wreckage from which human
beings were being taken, but the fire
was gaining upon the heroic crew that
was working with axe and lever to
liberate the imprisoned passengers.
Father Jeraschek is an accomplish
ed linguist. He called out in a clear
loud tone in the German language that
he was a Catholic priest, and was i'm
mediately answered by a young girl
who was pinned down by a beam which
had crushed and broke her lower limbs.
The fire was creeping up to her. She
reached into the bosom of her gown,
displayed a medal of the Blessed Vir-
gin and said, I am a Catholic Ether
Jeraschek was Immediately at her side
and administered the rites to the dy-
ing. He called out again in Polish that
swered by a poor fellow who drew
from his bosom q scapular. He left
him in charge of Father Berg and rush
ed on. announcing in Lithuanian and in
Polish who and what he was, and was
answered by scores of suffering men
and women who handed out their
prayer books and rosaries. He was
instantly among them. giving them
absoIutsOn and tho last rites of fbe
church.
"The fire gained on the crew and the
heroic farmers who rushed to the res
cue from the neighboring farm houses
and did everything that could be done
to aid the emigrants, and one hundred
were saved. AS the fire crept onward
those upon the scene knew that the
remaining sixty-seven men, women and
children were doomed. Father Jeras-
chek's hands were blistered, he was
drenched to the skin, and as the fire
reached the last car his tall form stood
out against the inky sky as with i'm
passive face and eyes turned to Heaven
he raised his hands and gave condi-
tional absolution to the dying. Death
had silenced the imprisoned passen-
gers and no sound came from the cars
but the roar of the flames The in
jured, the wounded and the dying lay
around in heaps. 1t was stiil dark and
raining, but through the darkness OF
the night Father Jeraschek and his as
sistant, Father Berg. labored among
the wounded and the dying until the
gloom lifted and the gray dawn slowly
settled upon the dreadful scene; they
had done all that man and priest could
do"