Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-31
EXCITEMENT AND
GRIEF MINGLED
Heartrending Scenes at the
Railroad Station.
ANXIETY OF THOSE WAITING
Ambulances and Patrol Wagons Call
ed Into Service.
ACTION BY CAPT. B0ARDMAN
Reserves From Police Stations on
Duty-Arrival of Relief Trains
Narrowing Incidents.


depot, other than on the relief train. last
night Before the extra newspapers APP
peared on the streets containing the first
public announcements of the terrible af-
fair there were comparatively few Ieople
about the depot Later in the night tue
place was thronged by men, women and
children.
Capt Robert Boardman, chief of de-
tectives, received the first intimatIcn of
the wreck while at his home. He proceeded
to police headquarters and sent out a num-
Der of hurry calls over the telephone.
These resulted in sending pell-mell to the
depot all the police patrol wagons and am
balances IN the city. The streetj IN the
vicinity of the depot soon presented
scene of excitement as the vehicles with
changing Eongs dashed up to the railroad
station TO receive the dead and "ounoea.
The police reserves from all the precincts
were also quickly on the ground, ana MAJ.
Sylvester in person assisted Capts. Byrnes
and Sullivan, and Lieuts. Falvey and
Hodges in placing cordons of patrolmen
on the train platforms and other places.
In the meantime the newsboys were cry
ing Extra Star" and people ran TO the
depot as they read of the startling disaster,
thus rapidly swelling the crowd about the
place.
Weeping of Women.
Pallid women who were expecting loved
ones on the Inflated train wept as they
were supported by friends, and strong men
with blanched and drawn faces waited to
learn the fate of their relatives who were
supposed to be among the passengers on
No. &C..
narrowing scenes were enacted as stretch
ers borne by brawny men were hurried
along the platform to the place where there
was a long line of waiting ambulances and
patrol wagons. Men and women oarteo
through the police lines in an effort to
catch a glimpse of the faces OF the mangied
and bleeding victims of the wreck In the
| hope of identifying some dear one. Dr
white of the Emergency Hospital, DR..
Lewis J. Battle, DR.. T. Glenn Jones and
| other physicians directed the loading OF
| the wounded into the vehicles. AS soon as
| victim of the wreck was placed In an
| ambulance one OF the physicians "oulo
| shout:
ITO the Emergency (or some other hos
| pitaD and let your horses out:
And like flash the vehicle would dart
| out into the darkness, its gong changing a
continuous warning to pedestrians to clear
| the way as it rushed away to one OF the
| hospitals.
| Baltimore and Ohio depot about 1915 o'clock
| last night. On board were District Commits
| sioner mcfarland. Maj. Richard Sylvester,
| chief of police; DR.. ]. Ramsey hewitt, the
! coroner; Dr. T. Glenn Jones, Morgue Master
| Schoneberger and all OF the aVa1laple mead
quarters detectives.
Going to Get the Dead.
| 1--WE are going to get the dead" Detective
Al. Parham sang out as the train pulled
| out of the depot.
| AS the rear lights of the relief train van
ished in the darkness out toward Terra
l of he nuyd
at the depot settled down to await it's re-
turn with it's freight of death.
| In the meantime Capt. Swindells and the
other police officials busted themselves In
arranging the patrol wagons and ambu-
lances for the reception of the dead. the
| waiting crowd being largely increased In
| the meantime.
| It was past midnight when some one
announced:
| Here comes the train.
| few minutes later the cars backed
! slowly into the train shed bearing the
| freight of mangled and. in many instances,
understandable humanity. The police had
to use extra exertions to force back the
| throng of people SO that the stretcher bear
| ers could carry the remains to the waiting
wagons. Some of the bodies had peen
| placed in pine collins temporarily. Others
| were carried on stretchers over which blood
stained sheets had been spread. and others
| were conveyed in long. basket-like recep-
| tacles. which had been provided by local
| undertakers.
Portions of Four Bodies.
AS one of these receptacles was carried
along the platform a man who had helped
| to gather up the remains at the scene of
| the wreck said:
! There are four bodies or what is left
| of them. in that basket-coff1R."
| The remains of woman as they were
| hurried along on a stretcher. caused many
persons to turn away in horror. 1t ap-
| peared that she must have been ground
| beneath the wheels Of the wrecked cars.
! The remains ON the stretcher appeared as
bunch Of blood-soaked rags. her body hav-
| ing been reduced to fragments.
| Another stretcher contained only the up
| per half of a woman's body In single
coffin were the remains of three children.
| THE scene in the Pickering lamps of the
depot, with the fog floating through as the
| dead were hurried from the train to the
| waiting vehicles. was most gruesome one
Many of those present were na aI.racse eo
| were expecting to find their relatives or
| friends could be easily distinguished from
/ the morbid ones.
Pathetic Scenes.
:, A wsal-dressed man, said to be- a District
official, stood with downoast eyes. his face
| tightly drawn and his fingers elenched, pre-
senting figure of misery and despair.
1 "He believes his wife was on the wrecked
/ train" a man who knew him remarked.
/ Out in front of the depot was young
woman in fainting condition, supported
by several friends. She had proceeded to
the depot to extend joyous holiday greetings
| to her father, who was coming home. on the
Inflated train.
| In the main waiting room sat venerable
| man. with snowy beard and hair. His head
was bowed and his hands clenched. The ex-
/ preston OF his face denoted agony. He was
| awaiting the arrival of the death train. On
| 1t he expected to find dear one. But the
old man would not say whom. His grief had
| made him dumb.
/ A large and powerfully built man raised
the blood stained sheet that covered one of
I the bodies being borne to patrol wagon.
| He dropped 1t suddenly and stood as II
stunned. 1T is she," he murmured and as
tears welled up to his eyes he turned and
/ walked away.
=. Worst Sight Ever Witnessed.
Commissioner Mcfarland was met by a
Star reporter as he stepped from the death
train
ut was the worst sight I have ever. wit
| messed" he said. "The worst calamity. that
has ever befallen the District. The wreck
| age Is strewn along the track for q dis
I lance of half mile, It was terrible terri