St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-01-11
VERMONT. WEDNESDAY. JANUARY II, 1911.
THROWN FROM TRAIN.
F. G. Bundy has Skull Fractured =
Made Wonderful Struggle to
Reach House.


in st. Johnsbury Sunday was the
dreadful accident which had be-
fallen Fred G. Bundy that morning.
At first it seemed that the accident
must be fatal but he was comfort
able yesterday and perfectly con-
scious.
On Sunday morning Mr.. Bundy
took the one o'clock train for New
York for short business trip. As
he is poor sleeper he planned to
take the day coach but his wife in
sisted on his taking sleeper and
he promised her he would do so
after he had had a smoke. He start
ed in the day coach and remained
there for a short time, enjoying with
the other passengers the antics of a
Frenchman who was furnishing
amusement for the crowd. At Nc
Indoes he started for the smoker
and just as he reached the door of
the day coach turned to look at the
comical Frenchman. This is the
last thing he remembers until he par
tally regained consciousness at the
hospital Sunday evening.
The first news of an accident to
reach St. Johnsbury was a telephone
message from McIndoes at 215 a. m.
to the police station that man had
been hurt by being thrown from the
train who looked like Mr.. Bundy of
st. Johnsbury. Thee police telephoned
DR.. Aldrich the message they had
received and an instant later he was
called up by G. F. Winch Of McIn-
does who had recognized Mr.. Bundy.
Meanwhile Officer Marden had start
ed for DR.. Aldrich's and on the way
ran across DR.. Allen who was just
returning from a case in his automo-
bile. He offered to carry DIR. AL
drich to McIndoes and no time was
wasted. in getting there. They found
Mr.. Bundy at the home of DR.. Glib
son, very badly hurt and uncon-
scious. AS it was impossible to
care for him there and there was no
regular train available special
train was ordered from Lyndonville.
Engineer Clayton Gould with the
engine and buggy off the Newport
extra, made the run from Lyndon
vile to McIndoes, 2z miles, in 20
minutes, stopping at st. Johnsbury
to take on Officers Marden and Fin
lay. At $50 a. M, the train was
back in ST. Johnsbury and Mr.. Bun
dy was taken to Brightlook hospital
While waiting for the train Mr..
Winch and DR.. Aldrich took a
lantern and carefully followed Mr..
Bundy's tracks from DIR. Gibson's
door to the spot where he was
thrown from the train. The trail led
through DR.. Gibsons back yard,
over a low picket fence, down a
steep bank to the railroad track.
From there on the trail was
crooked and hesitating, sometimes
between the rails, sometimes at one
eSi6 0fi SYt@ S&1I,.
while numerous imprints of his body
in the snow showed at what. a tre-
mendous effort he walked to
shelter. The spot where he was.
thrown is nearly a mile south of
McIndoes and 230 rods from Dr.
Gibson's. He was thrown at the
beginning of a curve, and on the
outer side, at a point where the level
ground between the track and
steep bank which goes down about
100 feet to the road and river is not
over four or five feet wide. The
snow was beaten down beside the
track and covered with blood and
here close beside the rail were found
his watch and one cuff.
The next day Mr.. Winch went
over the ground carefully again and
found evidences that he had been
dragged about rs feet before he was
freed. His coat and vest were torn
down the back and the theory of
those who know most about the mat
ter is that his coat collar caught on
something when he fell down, the
steps and held him for time.
With badly fractured skull he
must have been only partly con-
scious but that instinct for self-pres-
ervation which never fails led him
70 cf ,1-f foT fa1 1ioI7 i0I
was in plain sight and from there
to the nignt-1ight burning at Dr.
Gibson's.
Hearing a knock at his door DR..
Gibson opened it to bleeding,
bare-headed individual who said,
my name is Bundy-can | come in?"
and fell on the hall floor uncon-
scious. Naturally enough DIR. Glib
sons first thought was of foul play
and he telephoned at once to
deputy sheriff Winch. There is not
the slightest ground however for any
suspicion of foul play as his watch
and Valuables we're untouched. DR..
Gibson did not recognize Mr.. Bundy
but Mr. Winch did at once and tele-
phoned to the st. Johnsbury police
to ask at the railroad station if any
one had been missed from the train.
He was not missed however, until his
hat and bag were discovered at
White River Junction.
At the hospital it was found that
Mr.. Bundy's worst injuries were a
long scalp wound and depressed
fracture at the back of the head to
the left of the median line, about
two inches in diameter and the bone
driven down into the brain sub
stance about one fourth of an inch.
The bone was removed at one o'clock
Continued on page Sd
Mister Peter Piner