The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1907-05-13
Were on Excursion When They Met
Death-Victims Are From New
York. Buffalo and Pittsburg.
Many Others Injured.


midst of death when their special
train. running fifty miles an hour,
struck a defective switch at Honda,
a lonely station on the sand wastes Ut
the Pacific beach. derailing the train,
the coaches into flinders.
killing ihirtyonc almost instantly and
injuring more than a score Of others.
The bodies of twenty-five lie in the
morguos at Santa Barbara this after
noon and ten more are at San Luis
Obispo. The injured, many of whom
are terribly hurt and will probably
die, are In two sanitariums at san
Luis Obispo.
The wreck occurred exactly at 2.3j
o'clock. one hour and fortyiiye min
utcs after the COnclaye visitors, form
ing a merry party, had spent all Of
OF the morning sightseeing in Santa
Barbara.
The statement that the train was
making a terrific speed when 1t struck
the defective track is borne out by
the fact that It covered the siXty-one
miles If curves and crooked track be.
tween here and Honda In exactly 100
minutes.
There was no warning of the i'm
pending calamity The special plunged
upon the defective switch. and In an
instant the big locomotive, baggage car
diner and Pullman coupled with II
were hurled together In a huge heap
of wreckage. The engine shot forward
IN the broken track, tearing up the
rails and ties and twisting the huge
iron spans into fishhooks. The bag
gage car half buried itself in the sand
on the right side Of the locomotive.
II was smashed almost into kindling
wood.
The dining car. in which were thir-
ty-two persons eating their noonday
meal, leaped into the air and was
thrown directly onto the top of the
demolished locomotive. Nearly every
person in this car was instantly killed
Scores were scalded by the steam es.
Gaping from disconnected pipes in the
Kitchen of the diner
The terror and turmoil Of the scene
WAS indcscribahlo. Many of those who
escaped instant death hy the first i'm,
pact were crushed by the rear coaches
hurled upon the wrcckagc Others.
pinioned in the debris, were roasted
alive. Tho wreckagc caught fire from
the Goals of the engine. but was cNtin-
guishcd In few minutes 10y the pas
sengers who escaped injury
Engineer Frank Champlainc was
pitched with his cab twenty-five feet
beyond the engine ana got mp ana ran
thrcc-quarters Of mile. seeking help
before he discovered tnat he was Sc
vcrely scaldcd.
man standing behind his wife in
the baggage car was hurled through
huge rent in the roof sud alighted
in soft sand and almost uniniurcd
me woman was forced through the
flrors and wreckers had to lift tons
OF baggage 10 get her body out
But the mfortunatcs who occupie /
every seat in the dining car wer,
caught IN veritable dcathtrap. Only
two OF the nine men of the diners
crew are numbered among the dead
The remainder, though cooped up in
the narrow kitchen and pantry. sus.
taincd bad cuts and bruises.
\ last cali for luncheon had just
sounded few minutes berore the dis.
aster.
Raiah Temple NJ Reading occupied
the last car on the train. and it's mem.
hers We're the last Of the passengers
To 30 20 the diner. The car was filled
almost completely with Reading pes-
pie when the wreck occurred An in.
stant after the smash those who were
mot rendered lnscusible or otherwise
incapacitatcd by thC-compact jumped
from the train TO render aid, but the
grewsomo scene which met them rem.
dered many Of them unfit for the
work
Frlgntened women. peering through
the windows Of undamagcd sleepers.
tainted when they saw the bodies OF
their friends strewn along the ruad.
side blood from the c~lnds staining
the sanddrifts all about Men who
toiled hard at the task OF rescue col