The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-03-17

lied for the first time that something
was wrong. According to the story of
Fireman j. H. Smith of the west-bound
train, Engineer Walter Causlet opened
the emergency brake and the train was
checked for an instant, but the slippery
rails and the momentum of the heavy
! train carried it on.
From the stories told by several of the
| trafnmell swho survived and who were in
| the forward part of the train, the impact
| was scarcely noticeable, but the crushing
grinding noise that followed warned them
| that something had been struck Fireman
Smith was the only one of the engine
| crews to escape, all three big machines
being mashed to a tangled mass.
The baggage car of No. broke in two,
! and the three coaches squeezed together.
The baggage and mail car and coach of
No 16 buckled, but none of the cars was
| telescoped, as was first reported.
Sheet of Fire Is Seen.
Hardly hal The rrainmen and passengers
| reached realization that all was not
right when she other horror, q sheet
OF fire, ran through the cars on both sides
| of the engines. and in a twinking the
| cracking sound of breaking timbers start
| ed them to action In the forward coach
| of the west-bound train every seat was
| occupied by passengers. most of whom
were homeseekers on their way to the
northwest A number of foreigners were
| among them and in their terror they
| gave up life without making any attempt
| to reach safety outside the burning cars
| Paralyzed with fear and with prayers
upon their lips they sank to the floor of
| the car and were roasted alive. The
| cooler ones in the car seeing their dan
| ger rushed to the windows and doors,
| and with the aid of the passengers in
| the rear of the train and members of
| the train crew who were unhurt, managed
to reach the open air. Many of them
we're injured more or less seriously by
the rough handling they received, or from
| flying glass and timbers.
Heat Was Unbearable.
! Although 'nlny were willing to under
| take the risk, efforts to rescue those
| who remained in the burning cars would
| have been suicidal as the heat was un-
| bearable. The wrecked cars were soon
| reduced to a mass of smoulderlng ruins.
Communication was opened with the
Pueblo office of the railroad from Port
land a mile or so away, and relief
! train with physicians was dispatched to
| the wreck at once. AS quickly as possi-
BILE the injured were placed In the un-
| damaged sleepers, and the engine of the
relief train started back to Pueblo with
them, and also the passengers of the east
/ bound train who had been saved
| Another relief train came from Florence
and the engine was coupled to the sleep
ers of No. 16, and as many of the bodies
of the dead as could be removed from
| the wreck at that time placed aboard.
| This done, the searchers began picking
up bones, pieces of burned clothing and
personal property of the victims of the
disaster, until several boxes had been
| filled. These remains were placed aboard
the undamaged sleepers of No 16 and
taken to Portland and subsequently
brought to Pueblo.
| Only One Body Recognizable.
| It is reliably reported that but one
body is sufficiently intact to make recog-
milton possible. all the others having
been burned to ashes. Identification of
| the victims who succumbed to the merci-
less flames is only possible. it is believed,
| through a comparison of lists of res
| cued and missing. No accurate estimate
| OF the number of dead was possible by
/ reason of the fact that so many of the
bodies were practically destroyed.
| Work of clearing away the debris of the
| wreck began at daylight with the aid of
] two wreckers. one on each side of the
| wre ckage. It is announced that the track
/ will be entirely clear and trains running
| by tomorrow noon.
| One of the pathetic tragedies OF the
| disaster was the wiping out of all but
| two of the family of Taylor Hewitt of
Lebo. Kas. Father mother. daughter,
| grandchld and the wives of the sons are
missing The two sons. A. E. and w. L..
| Wewitt are among the injured in the
| hospital here A. E. Hewitt said tonight:
Survivor Tells of Dream.
"Our party consisted of my father. Tay-
| lor Hewitt. my mother. Lillian Hewitt,
my sister. Pearl aged 10; my brother. W.
| L. Hewitt my sster-in-law, Winona,
aged 81, my wife, Catherine. aged II, our
| four months old baby. Mr.. and Mrs. Ed
ward Conley. and Frederick Jones. We
were going to Joseph, Ore. dream that
| Continued on Second Pans]