The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1907-08-22
FAST TRAIN WRECKED.
BurIington's Denver-ChiCago Flyer
DitChed while Running at High
Speed East of Charlton.

Speed East of Charlton.
One of the worst wrecks on the main
line of the Burlington railroad in this
state in recent years, occurred about
o'clock last Thursday afternoon when
No. 6 the fast Denver-Chicago train was
ditched about mile east of Russell, the
first station east of Charlton.
Miss Mate Parrish, of this city, was
passenger on the wrecked train, having
Grove, ILL.,, where she was enroute to
visit her sister, Mrs. E. V. Lawrence,
but fortunately the chair car in which
she was riding was not overturned, but
the front trucks were torn loose and
several of the passengers pretty badly
shaken up, and one lady had her back
wrenched severely.
The train left Charlton few minutes
late and as it only stopped at county
seats, was running at high rate of
speed fifty-five to sixty miles an hour
at the time of the accident, which oc-
Cured on the Russell hill, where the
grade has descent of about sixty-eight
feet to the mile. While tearing along
at terrific speed the front trucks of
the first mail car left the rails, and in a
second every car except the two
sleepers at the rear of the train and the
engine and tender had left the rails, in
all ten cars being off the track and
several of them were badly broken and
splintered. The train was heavily
loaded and the only thing that prevent
ed many from being killed was that the
accident occurred in a cut and the dirt
banks prevented the cars from turning
over and over.
The terrific force exerted by the
trucks and splintered cars upon the
track, tore up more than 100 feet of
steel, twisting the heavy rails into fan
tastic shapes. Ties were dragged from
firm imbedment and in turning end over
end several of them penetrated the
floors of the cars. The heavy six-wheel
trucks were reduced to shattered iron
and splintered wood, while the sides of
the coaches were torn out and the glass
of the windows shivered to fragments.
AS soon as they could disentangle
themselves from the wreckage, the con-
ductor, brakemen and baggagemen OBJ
serving flames bursting from the diner,
formed a bucket brigade, and carrying
water from the tender, succeeded, after
hard fight, in extingushing the fire
and saving the train from total destruc-
tion and also in rescuing number OF
passengers wedged in the wreckage,
from being burned to death.
The crew, assisted by a number of the
male passengers who had gotten out,
managed to rescue most of those in the
train outside. The injured, for none
were killed outright, were carried to
the rear sleepers that remained on the
track. They were made as comfortable
as was possible under the circumstances.
Conductor Adams fastened back to
Russell as soon as conditions would
permit and wired information of the
disaster to Ottumwa and Charlton.
A special train arrived from each of
these places, bringing physicians and
surgeons. The rear sleepers, containing
the injured were detached, taken back
to Russell, switched to the south track
and taken to Ottumwa, where those
suffering from hurts were placed in the
hospital. The wreck blockaded the
north main track between Russell and
Melrose until the following day.
Eleven persons were seriously injur-
ed, and it is feared that several of them
will die. The injured aside from those
who received minor bruises were:
W. D. Humphrey, cook on the diner,
left side crushed, will die.
Mrs. James Brysdale, New Brunswick,
Canada, internally injured, side hurt
and generally bruised, will die.
j.. Meredith, Chicago, left arm broken
in three places.
F.C. Crowley, travelling man from
Des Moines, head cut and shoulder hurt.
T. G. Russell, Chicago, left shoulder
dislocated.
DR.. !. H. Phillip, Avery, Ia, deep cash
in scalp.
Strickland Gillilland, Baltimore,
Maryland, arm broken.
NJ. S. Prayhans, Omaha, Neb., back
and kidneys injured.
Mrs. W. o. Carter, Hayes Center, o.
head and side injured.
Mrs. ". P. Shakespeare, Cleveland,
Ia, foot badly mashed.
W.D. Coombs, Kansas City, arm, neck
and back badly wrenched, condition
serious.