Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-07-05
Al KILLED AS EXPRESS
HITS PASSENGER TRAIN
CONTINUED from Page one.)

was attached there to take the train
| over the hill at Groveland, 65 miles
west.
Long before No left Elmira, extra
freight train No. 81 bound for Buffalo
from Scranton, had pulled through,
When the heavy grade at Gibson was
reached, a draw bead pulled otit, and
No. 81 was crippled Signals which
she put out stopped No. 8 as the lat
ter came up with her two engines. The
first engine was uncoupled and set at
work to push the dead end of the
freight into a siding to allow No.
and No. II, which was due in Is or 80
minutes to pass. The work was slow
and considerable time elapsed. During
the monotonous wait many passengers
from the day coaches got out and in
Investigated the cause of the delay.
Meanwhile the signals had been
thrown against No. II, which was
tearing along at IS miles an hour to-
ward the stalled trains. These failed
to stop the express and the crash fol-
lowed.
Reseuers were quickly on the
scene. In what seemed an Incredibly
short time hundreds of automobiles
had lined the highway BY o'clock
physicians had started all of the
wounded on their way to hospitals OF
were giving emergency attention te
victims on the scene. The only eX-
ceptfons were a few persons who had
been pinned beneath wreckage so diff
cult to penetrate that 1t was some time
before they were released.
Thirteen of the injured and 10 of
the dead were taken to Elmira on Il
special train All the other dead were
taken >to undertaking rooms in Corn
ing and the remainder of the injured
were conveyed to the Corning City
hospital All the physicians in the
city were summoned and many min
listers and priests were called to ad-
minister last sacraments and receive
messages for relatives and friends
from the dying.
Most of the bodies found were bad
~ mangled. The cars themselves were
one heaped UP mass of wreckage,
jamming into each other in telescope
fashion. The last two cars on train
No III remained on the track and
later were used as hospital coaches. a
special train from Elmira had brought
surgical assistances from that city
and ii was this train that afterwards
aided in removing the dead and in
jured.
At the Corning hospital, which has
accommodations for only 40 patients,
some of the patients had to lie upon
the floors until the physicians could
reach them and give them necessary
attention.
Although Engineer Schroeder, of the
express, declared there was no flag
man TO warn him of the presence of
the stalled train ahead, Lackawana
officials declare, tonight, that a flag
man had been sent back in the rear
of No. 8. when she was held up.
A statement concerning the wreck was
given out by General Supt. e. M. Rims
of the Lackawanna, tonight, as follows
Il believe that the accident was I'M
doubtedly due to the fact that Engineer
Schroeder, in charge of the express
train, ran through the block and past
a flagman, who had been in the rear of
train No. 9, which was standing still.
This aagman claims to have gone behind
the, train the required distance, accord
ing to the book of rules of the Lacka-
wanna Railroad Co. This is the only
cause which / can ascertain at the pres
ent time"
Other officials declared that the flag
man was a mile back of train No. 8. They
also assert that a mile back of the ILL
fated train was an automatic signal,
through which Schroeder ran.