Arizona republican., 1907-06-30

tion of the track warranted. An ex- animation of the east switch of pass ing-track showed the left-hand main track point rail in good condition, held securely 10 the stock rail: switch stand in good condition with no evidence of it's having been tempered with. This section of track was protected by au- tomatic signals and switch fitted with circuit breaker. and so adjusted as to throw the home signal to danger. to- gether with the distant signal. if the point rails fails to fit up to stock rail within a quarter of an inch.
 The last test of contact points was made on April 20 and found to be in proper adjustment The signal main tainer had passed the point of derail- ment but a few hours before the acci- dent, making his customary inspection. and found no defects.
 The opposite of sidetrack point rail was found by the board of inquiry to have a small portion recently broken off close to the end. indications being that it had been struck a severe blow
 The actual cause of the accident could not be determined after an ex- tended investigation.
 The only tenable theory seems to be that some obstruction. possibly brake shoe. fell against the point of the switch just after the engine had pass ed and just before the first derailed wheel reached it: that this wheel struck the obstruction, drove it against the point springing the point. bending the connecting rod. at the same instant drawing the other point away from the opposite rail sufficient ly for the opposite wheel to pass be- hind it: that before the next pair of wheels reached it the obstruction had been jumped out of position and the switeh points returned to their normal position. the balance of the train pass ed up the main track.
 That at least one truck of the tender was involved Is indicated by what fol- lowed-if the baggage car and not the tender had been derailed the coupling between them would certainly have given way, and the engine and tender would have run ahead of the balance of the train most likely without de- railing. certainly without turning over the engine. But the coupling between engine and tender consisted of three heavy bars. which firmly held them together. while the tender trucks were tearing up the track and burying themselves in the sand, and finally pulled the engine off the track when it at once turned over; the tank, torn from it's trucks and forced ahead by the cars behind. shot over and to the right of the engine. the coupling being then broken.
 It is possible that 1t was the for ward wheel of the tender that first met the obstruction. and that the bag gage car truck was not derailed until 1t reached the track torn up by the derailed tender. This requires that the construction fell from the engine.
 The engine lay on its left side with iis underside exposed. A close exam ination failed to show any part of the running gear out of place or missing. The right-hand siSe of the engine was also in position to be thoroughly ex- amined. There was couple of brake shoes broken, but these may have been and probably were. broken as a result of the wreck. The missing pieces were too small to have caused the derail- ment in the manner above described. The tender was completely demolish- ed, the rear trucks were carried ahead