The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1911-07-28

along the northern face of the great
hill. pricking out the smallest details
OF the waiting special, the closed
switch and the cleaning lines OF the
rails.
With this powerful spot light 10
project its cone Of dazzling brllliance
upon the scene, the watchers on the
rallied platform of the superintendent
service car saw every detail In the
swift outworking OF the tragic spec.
tacle for which the hill facing curve
was the stage setting.
When the oncoming passenger train
was within three or four hundred
yards OF the spur track switch and
racing toward 1t at full speed, a man.
who seemed to the onlookers 10 rise
up out Of the ground in the trains
path. ran down the track to meet the
uprushing headlight. waving his arms
frantically in the stop signal. For an
instant that seemed an age the pas-
senger engineer made no sign. Then
came short, sharp whistle scream.
spewing of sparks from railhead and
tire at the clip of the emergency
brakes, a crash as OF the ripping
asunder Of the mechanical soul and
body, and wrecked train lay tilted at
an angle of AZ degrees against the
bank OF the hillside cutting.
1t was n moment for action rather
than for words. and when he cleared
the platform hand rail and dropped.
running, Lidgerwood was only the
fraction OF n second ahead of Van
Lew and Jefferis. With Bradford
swinging his lantern for Williams and
his fireman to come on. the four men
were at the wreck before the cries of
fright and agony had broken out upon
the awful stiffness following the crash
There was quick work and heart.
breaking to be done and, for the first
few critical minutes. terrible lack of
hands 20 do 1t. Crawford. the engineer.
was still In his cab. pinned down by
the coal which had shifted forward at
the shock of the sudden stop. In the
wreck OF the tender, the ironwork of
which was rammed into shapeless
crumplings by the upreared trucks of
the baggage car, lay the fireman. past
human help, as n hasty side swing of
Bradford's lantern showed.
The baggage car, riding high upon
the crushed tender. was body whole.
but the smoker. day coach and sleeper
were all more or less shattered, with
the smoking car already beginning to
blaze from the broken lamps. 1t was
n crisis TO call out the best in any gift
OF leadership, and Lidgerwood's genius
for swift and effective organization
came out strong under the hammer
blow of the occasion.
stay here with Bradford and JEFF
ferris and get that engineer outw he
called TO Van Lew. Then, with arms
outspread. he charged down upon the
trains company. escaping as it could
through the broken windows of the
ears. This way, every man of your
he yelled, his shout dominating the
rlamor of cries, crashing glass and
Kissing steam. 1.-THE fires what we've
got TO flghtl Line up down to the river
md pass water in anything you can
ret hold of! Here, Groner"-to the
train conductor. who was picking him
self up out of the ditch into which the
shock had thrown him-"send some
'ody to the Pullman for blankets.
lump for IL, man, before this fire gets
Luckily there were by this time
'lenty of willing hands to help. The
limanyoni Is mans country. and
here were few women in the trains
passenger list. Quickly a line was
ormed to the nearby margin Of the
lver, and water, in hats. in buckets
mprovised out of pieces Of tin torn
rom the wrecked car roofs, I'm satu-
ated coats. cushion covers and Pull
nan blankets. Kissed upon the fire,
'eat 1t down and presently extin-
uished It.
Then the work of extricating the i'm
ones began, light for It be-
ne obtained by the backing of VIII
ams' engine to the main line above
he switch so that the headlight played
pom the scene.
Lidgerwood was fairly I'm the thick
[ the rescue work when Miss Brew
ter. walking down the track from the
ervice car and bringing the two young
'omen, who were afraid to be left be-
IND. launched herself and her COM
anions into the midst of the nerve
lcking horror.
Give us something to do" she COM
landed when he would have sent
lem back, and he changed his mind
no set them ut work binding up
ounds and caring for the injured
ute as If they had been trained
nrses sent from heaven at the oppor-
Inc moment.
In very little time the length and
readth of the disaster were fully
nown and its consequences alleviated
far as they might be with the
cans at hand. There were three
lied outright in the smoker, two in
e half filed day coach and none in
e sleeper. six in all, including the