Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-31
EARLY ON TIE SCENE
CoMMISsIoNER MACFARLAND
VISITS THE WRECK.

VISITS THE WRECK.
Commissioner Mcfarland. as soon as ne
heard Of the wreck, communicated with the
police and fire departments and the hos
pital service, and then went to tie Balti-
more and Ohio station to supervise the re-
ception of the injured. He then went to
the scene of the accident, taking the cor
oner with him to prepare for the fnvestiga-
tfon as to the disaster. and also to see
that the injured and dying were cared for
Mr.. mcfarland examined the whole scene
and directed a search for victims who
might possibly have been overlooked, with
Maj. Sylvester and Chief Belt, whom he
took with him on the train. He then re-
turned to the city with the dead and saw
that their remains We're properly cared for.
He remained at the station until o'clock
this morning. He had many interviews at
their friends, and he assured everybody
that there would be rigid Investigation
by the coroner.
Terrible Calamity.
Commissioner Macfarland made the fol-
lowing statement regarding the wreck, to
Star reporter today:
TT is. of course, a terrible calamity and
affects the wl-ole community so deeply that
am recommending that all flags on Dis
trict buildings be half-masted until after
the funerals of the victims, as a mark OF
the general sympathy.
1.-The sights at the Baltimore and Ohio
station last night were pathetic in the ex-
treme. And what l saw on the RICH. of
way between Terra Gotta and Tacoma
cident WILL Of course, be investigated % the
bottom by the railroad company and by
the authorities. The coroner's inquest will
be thorough. The coroner was with me as
we inspected the scene of the accident
last night, and got personally some valu-
able data.
II want to commend in the highest terms
the relief work Of the Baltimore ana Ohio
Railroad Company and all that was done
by Maj Sylvester, Chief Engineer Belt, end
their assistants. II could not have been bet
ter DONE
Commissioner West on Hand.
Commissioner West spent four hours at
the wreck. arriving shortly after the acct
dent and not leaving until the bodies of
the dead had been placed aboard the train
for conveyance into the city. He was &C
companied to the scene by Mr.. H Chad
wick Hunter, one of the Commissioner s
neighbors. who placed his automobile at
the disposal OF Mr.. West. The latter in
speaking Of the scene at the wreck, said
it was one OF the most graesome he , had
with the debris and wreckage Of the
demolished cars, with bodies strewn along
the track for distance of quarter of
mile.
Inspectors Cross and Gessford and the
other police officers on the scene at once
reported to Mr.. West. and were compli-
mented by him upon the excellent man.
agement which they had displayed.
Commissioner West in making state
ment to a Star reporter today said that
he thought the railroad authorities should
| no aoyara1v criticised for their hardness in
removing the bodies of the dead victims to
the city for Identification by relatives and
| friends, who anxiously awaited any SCRAP
| of tidings. The delay of four hours seemed
| to indicate a lack of interest on the part
Of the railroad people
"ought Never to Have Occurred"
"The terrible wreck at Terra Gotta last
night" Commissioner West added, 'is all
| the more terrible because it ought never
| have occurred. The value Of the block
system is completely neutralized when the
railroad authorities will allow another train
in upon a block already occupied. From
what l learned at the scene of the wreck
| last night, the train of empty cars was
given at the Silver Spring block station
what is known among railroad men as
the double green which meant that the
engineer was to proceed with caution. /
| cannot understand, however, why with the
| knowledge that there was q local train
ahead, the second train was not brought to
| stop at Silver Spring and held there until
| the passenger train was safely out of the
| way. 1t was all the more necessary to ex-
erciSe this precaution in view of the fact
| that the night was extremely foggy, a con-
| dition which always adds to the danger Of
| railroading.
1.-The second section consisted merely Of
| empty coaches so that there was no imme-
| date necessity of hurrying it into Wash
| ington. Another thing which impressed me
was the delay in sending train to con-
vey the dead bodies to the city, where they
| could be placed in the morgue and be iden-
| titled by relatives and friends. The injured
| were taken to the city as quickly as pos
| sible, but after that the railroad sent out
| two or three wrecking trains, one of which
| came all the way from Baltimore. and 1t
/ seemed far more important to care for a
| few damaged coaches than for the dead ly-
| ing out the hillside in the rain.
"A through express to the west was then
given the right of way, so that 1t was final
| 1y nearly midnight before the dead were
carried into the city. nearly five hours after
| the accident occurred. / hope that the in
vestigation into the accident will be rigid
! and thorough, because it is evident that a
| system which allows two trains on block
| at the same time Is liable to result in an
| other tragedy