The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1907-01-03
WRECK NEAR
TOPEKA, KAN.
Thirty.five Lives Lost At
VOlIand.
NEARLY ALL MEXlCANS
Thirty Bodies Burned In Ruins
OF Rock Island and Pacific
Trains in Collision.

TOPEKA, Kan, Jan. 3.--Thlriy-iivt
persons, all Mexlcans but three, were
killed and the bodies OF thirty Mex
leans were Moderated In head-on
collision Of two passenger trains Of the
Chicago. Rock Island aud Pacific rail
road near Nolland.
Fiftyhve were badly injured. The
wreck occurred while both trains were
running slowly on a curve In cut
where the grade was steep.
Al Link. a negro porter. died In the
wrecked tourist ear.
All the killed were In the southbound
train except a tramp. who was on the
baggage car OF the northbound train
This tramp and workman accompa.
nylng gang Of thlrty-two Mexican Ia
borers were the only Americans killed
so far as known. although passenger
says that woman aud "a child we're
burned In a tourist ear.
The wrecked trains run between III
raso and Chicago.
The ears went into the ditch. ami
several of them caught fire. Many OF
the bodies OF the victims were consum-
Ell by the flames. The injured are he.
Ing brought TO Topeka on relief train.
Blame FOR the collision seems IN rest
on John Lyncs. the telegraph operator
NJ Nolland. who has disappeared or
dcrs had been Issued Tor Nos. - and
- o. pass at Nol'aud. These order,
bad been sent 10 the operator nt Vol.
und. who was Instructed 20 hold No.
- az that point For some reason BE-
failed 10 deliver the order 10 No. ~.
aud the latter train went hy. mrvling
No. 30 few miles west u VoiInnd
I.yncs icd before the wreck occur-
rel. but was captured later aud
brought to the county Jail here. Five
minutes before the trains met be- wired
the dispatcher NJ follows:
"No. - has gone. aud have gone
also"
Then he left his key.
Even with this dispatch In hand
there was no possible way OF prevent
ing the wreck.
A. far ~ the officials Of the Rock.
land here know at this time. all the
killed and seriously Injured were pas.
scngcrs on No. -. Few II any plsson.
gers on No - were seriously hurt.
Both trains were heavy ones.
Just before the collision Engineer
Mcmahon and Fireman Brown Of No.
- aud Engineer Slator and Fireman
Sweeney Of No. - Jumped. All four
escaped Injury.
An interpreter for the Mexlcans was
questioned ~ he lay slowly burning
to death under the wrcckagc lie said
there were over thirty Mcxlcans ln
their party going from Kansas city 10
~ Paso 10 work for the Rock Island
company.
Most Of the Injuries were due 10 the
setting Of the emergency brakes. Most
every passenger In the soutlhpund
train was thrown 10 the car floor by
the quick settling OF the brakes. The
northbound train was running ten
miles an hour up grade. The Mcxl
cans were plnioncd under the seats.
and the doors were damned ~ they
could not gct out. In the chair car
also many passengers were held down
By the seats.
The train caught FIRE from the gas
tanks. which were broken. The pas
scngcrs In the rear ears escaped In
nlghicloihcs aud dressed In the mud
beside the tracks Then came the cries
for help among the McNicans In the
smoking ear aud the people pinloncd
fast In the chair car. Every man and
nearly every woman on the train tried
10 rescue the unforiunaics. but the
flames soon became too hot 10 permit
Of approaching the car