Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1912-07-16
that had the flagman on train No.

Iudt udu Inc IldSIudu Oh IIdiu' nv.
properly protected his train No.
would have been stopped, but NOR
thorough investigation may show tina
the fault lies entirely with the en-
/ gineer Of No. 8, who was killed in thu
wreck. However, it was extremel!
foggy at the time of the accident, ant
II was therefore difficult to see sig
nails Of any kind until right upon them
Official Record Of Results.
| All Of the killed were in the real
sleeper, the Hamlet, which was prac
tically demolished. The next car, the
Fanwood, was derailed and turned
upon it's side The sleeper Mohican
next ahead, and all the cars ahead Of
that remained on the track and were
practically unchanged The engineer
of No. 2 with all unchanged cars pro
ceeded to Chicago, after an interval
with the passengers. The dead were
taken to Johnson's 'morgue at La
Grange, and efforts are now being
made to identify all of them Among
the unidentified dead are man, a
woman and two children, evidently all
of one family, and apparently immi.
grants
"The engine of train No. was not
only derailed, but badly damaged and
blocked all three tracks for about two
hours, when the north track was
cleared and a number Of other trains
from the northwest, west and south
west, came to Chicago. The middle
track was cleared at noon and the
south track was cleared at p. m.
"The conductor OF No. 2 was Frank
Hughes, who sufferedsa fracture of
one arm and one leg, and was taken
from the wreck to his home in Hins-
dale"
| Blame Points to Flagman.
1.-THE fog certainly had something to
do with the accident" said Mr.. Eustis
in simplifying his official statement.
"but from the assertions of those who
examined the conditions, we Of the
road want to know just what the flag
man, Woodruff, did to protect his
train. He says he went back 1,125 feet
after his train stopped and placed tor
pedcs on the track and also Tagged
| the train as 1t flew by him. If he did
this he did all he could do, but If he
did, it seems the second train would
have been able to slow down enough
to have prevented so serious crash.
"Other reports reached us, that the
flagman first went to the tower, then
returned to his train, and then again
walked back to the tower before at
tempting to warn the second train II
this was done he Is responsible. The
facts have come to US from so many
different sources that we do not wish
to pass judgment upon any one. but
will do all in our power to assist the
- Co. ~
Nine minutes elapsed from the
time the first train stopped until the
accident That was ample time to have
given the second train warning"
Saw tho Wreck Coming.
The only man who saw the impend
ing wreck and lived to tell the story
was H. Q. Grain, fireman on the trans
continental mail. which struck the
overland limited.
1--WE were travelling between sixty
and seventy miles an hour when the
limited doomed in front" Grain said at
St. Anthony's hospital. THE fog was
dense. E; Fl. Brownson, the engineer.
was peering into the fog. He died at his
post We had gotten the clear track |
signal at Hinsdale and did not suspect |
wrong until we were right on
the limited.
II heard the report OF the torpedoes |
that had been placed to stop us and =!
jumped to the right side !
of the cab and looked out. Almost at
that minute we struck the rear end OF |
No and jumped or was thrown from
the cab.
Engine, cars and everything else
went over me and when came to my
self was lying in tangle Of wreck
age, covered with wet sawdust and with !
a strange man across my chest He was
calling for his wife and daughter and
to be pinned down by a !
beam.
Foot Crushed; Finger Conc.
81 managed to crawl out and found
that my foot was crushed and my shoe
hanging around my ankle. My left hand
was badly crushed and one finger was
gone. There was a fire burning near
the man who was pinned near me and
got a bucket and tried to carry water
TO put out the fire. I was SO weak l
could not pull him out by myself. was ,
dazed and hardly knew what happened /
after the first effect Of the shock wore
off.
II had been in one wreck before, but |
I never saw anything like the wreck out
there. Men and women with faces cut
Or dragging mangled limbs after them
crawled about searching for relatives. |
Many of the women were hysterical !
and struggled frantically to get out of
the coaches
BIanes Fog for Disaster.
Questioned as to his opinion as to
the cause Of the wreck, Grain placed |
the blame on the fog He insisted that
the operator at HinsdaIe should have
known If No. had stopped within the
block; but would not place the blame on
the operator for giving the clear track
signal when the mail train passed.
1--WE leave Burlington fifty eight !
minutes behind the limited and get into
five minutes behind her, SO you !
may know that we have to travel" he
said "The mail train does not carry
passengers. We had seven cars Of mail
and about fifteen mail clerks"