The Washington herald., 1906-10-30

NO.s AiNB LD IElDai LlhSI IhGEs
perfectly, and the twisted and torn raj
/ which caused the disaster acted exactly
rs they said it should act They declared
I that it must lave been a broken flange
on one OF the wheels, or something which
dropped from one of the trucks tina,
caused the rail on the draw 10 be torn
from its position. thereby .hrowing the
train upon the Ties.
But the coroner aud his jurors, who
are men carefully selected for their high
type OF integrity, could not sec how this
explanation was mechanically POSSIBLE. %
For between the end Of the raj on the
solid span and the end Of the rlppcd
out rail on the draw there would have
been only three-quarters Of an inch OF
space had the latter rail been in its
proper place when the train rolled upon It
How broken fange could have caused
this TO tear away from a solid box in
which Il was automatically confined.
when ia proper position. no investigator
could understand. Neither could il be
made clear how anything falling from
a truck could have ripped out the rail-. If
the heavy length of track was mated
with the length Of solid span. nothing
thicker than a mans thumb could have
fallen between them and caused one to be
separated from the other.
But they were separated. and the ont
side rail on the draw was struck squareIy
upon its end by something It was bent
into the shape Of an attenudtCd g =" and
after the accident the end that was
strickland that should have been living
directly against the end of the solid span
rail-was lying eighteen inches away from
its normal place.
This afternoon. Immediately after the
examination of the bridge, Coroner Gas
Kill was asked the direct question:
" hat, IN your opinion, caused that rail
to bc struck and torn away?''
From what I have seen, ! think the
ran was not IN its place" he replied. 1T
looks TO ne as If it had not gone down
into its confning box. but was riding
upon one edge Of the box. / am deter
mined that If this was so We will learn
the reason why. OF course, the wheels or
trucks may have caused the accident, but
cannot understand how. They viii be
raised. the railroad men tell me. and get
cables around them"
FIange Is Not Broken.
When the first car was lifted from the
bottom by the wrecking derrick its frcnt
wheels and trucks were attached TO the
body, but they slipped back into the wa
ter. There was Il report among the spec
tators who saw them that they were in
tact. and that 10 fange was broken. But
Of this 10 one could be sure.
Beyond doubt, however. the accident
viii cost the Pennsylvania Railroad an
auor77l5rle SIM, in dar,,,r, s,.,f... 81 -.
Elements. for 1t seems certain that some
defect in the bridge equipment or the
cars running gear was responsible for
the frightful loss Of life.
a point which Coroner GaskilI has al |
ready brought out appears bad for the
railroad. One OF the first things that
be and all the other spectators noticed |
was that no part of the bridge over the
Ihoroughfare was equipped with guard /
-aiis rails inside those upon which 1
rains run-that are used on nearly all /
bridges and curves 10 prevent trains from /
1mning wild. even If they DO leave their |
racks.
Il do not know whether the laws Of t
lew Jersey say that all railroad bridges /
hau be equipped with guard rails" the /
'Oroner said, this afternoon, but I in i
end to have the matter looked up care 1
ully before the inquest. I know that
very bridge with which I am familiar
las them, and they are one Of the reason
bile precautions which / believe the law
avs shall be applied by railroads"
The Inquest will be held on Thursday.
To-day the jurors, according 70 the Jer-
ey law requirements, had to 60 through
he ghastly form of examining every body
y far recovered.