Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1906-10-29

him safely UP. I1c "et''
ed. He declined to give MS i.t m ..,a,+
The wrecking train, worheu an nieN-'
irving to hoist the supiiiefseu
When the rear car "i ti,e
oauoht on the abutment on 'iie VI
where if hung poised 1or iiiiiuto
,bare was q frantic rush OF the pa,'ei-
,ra,s for the rear door fropaply
20 nv more got out and as the car
r,,,,noad over the edge, more leape'' ii''o
~. 1,.otar This car struck the otherS
nan SLOWLY slid off into the water.
49, moments delay however, gave
.I.oro1 passengers the opportunity 70
;a.o the water before the car
finally was submerged.
,1otorman Scott stuck to his post
800, went down with his train. Con-
',,,a+or curtis also persisted. The thlrd
,na;nnap Brakeman Wood. proved
.:Is.a1f = hero. When the train left
,ha rails and was humping over the
tics Wood ran TO the rear door Oh tne
Isl car threw it wide open ana helu
II FIR tho passengers to escape. ne
n III, dru:- o-cn until The car sllu
~. IA, Iii ;-.. ann hc went down INTO
~ water with il. Ike then swan 70
,ba shore. lis action in holding wide
the door probably saved many lives.
When the third car dropped into the
water Henry Rocmer, was in the act OF
crawling from a window. Freeing
himself with an effort ana began d
etropg swimmer Romer set about TO
help others. Swimming along the slde
of the fast sinking car, ne kicked out
the glass in the windows and thus gave
several passengers an opportunity 10
get out.
one man was caught in window
and was drowned before he could ex-
triate himself. The accident was wit
messed by many people and rescue
work was prompt. Strong swimmers
endeayored to dive to the submerged
ears in search of bodies, but so strong
was the rushing tide that they were
forced to desiSt. Professional divers
We're then secured who GOnned their
armor and went down. But even they
We're unable to do anything against
the tide that swirlcd around the sunk
en- coaches.
An Italian named Marco Bona was
rescued from the third car but died
later from his injuries. Boats soon
swarmed about the spot where the cars
went down, the location being marked
by the tops of their trolley poles. AL
though the cars got power from Il third
rail. they also carried trolley poles to
take power from above if necessary.
AS quickly as Il body was brought
up or tloated to the surface, it was re-
moved to the city morguc.
Camden physician whose name IS
as yet not known, together with his
wife, was in the first car and both are
believed to be among the dead, although
the bodies have not been recovered
When the train left the rails it was
| running at 4 high speed. according to
some persons as fast as 40 miles an
hour
a defective rail is believed to have
been responsible for the train leaving
| the track. Although the work of rescue
was begun Immediately after the catas-
trophe, the recovery of the dead was
retarded by lack of facilities Not I'M
til daylight tomorrow morning will the
full extent Of the tragedy become known
and not until then can any real head
way be made in recovering and identi-
fling the dead. 1t is believed that at
low tide the cars will be only partly
submerged.
a wreckfng crew and several divers
at work tonight endeavoring to lift the
submerged cars. but results are not
looked for until tomorrow.
In the meantime the city authorities
doing tnpir a
hundred Of anxious relatives and friends
who are pouring into Atlantic City
searching for missing ones.
Details as to just how the horrible
accident occurred are vague. "A COM
plete circumstantial story cannot be
obtained of the passengers as yet
Two causes have been assigned for the
derailmcnt of the train one is that
the rails spread and the other that the
rails We're not properly locked when
the draw bridge was closed after a
pleasure yacht which had just passed
through. The man who may best be
able to tell what caused the accident
is Daniel B. Stewart the bridge tender
whose work it is to look after the
drawbridge. Stewart, however, is in
no condition to talk tonight The
horror of the accident has so upset
him that he is temporarily bereft of his
reason. Stewart is 60 years old He
was the only person who witnessed the
plunge of the train with it's human
cargo from a close point of vantage
The scenes which followed caused hin
to lose his reason and when he was
found hours afterwards he could not
tell rational story.
From the officials of the railroad com.
pany only a meagre and disconnected
story Of the OcCurrance could be had
The train, which was made up of three
heavy vestibule coaches Of the newest
type. all electrically equipped. left
camden at l O'Clock this afternoon
Walter Scott was the motorman on the
forward car; John l.. Curtis of Cam.
den was the conductor in cl arpe anf
Ralph II. Wood was the brakeman
When the train pulled out of Cam1er
| the coaches We're comfortably filled
women and children being in the ma.
Joritv. They occupied the two forward
cars. Fifteen members of Tosca's Ar.
| tllery Band, all Italians. were amone
| the passengers in the rear coach. Al