The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-11-18
Mass Meetings of Protest to be Held in Towns Along New Haven Lines
Forty Ministers Discuss Rail- road Slaughter in South Nor walk ard Protest Meeting is Arranged
Inter State Commerce COmmis- sion Investigating Accident to Merchants Express
REGENT WRECKS ON
 EW HAVEN ROAD.

Federal Express wrecked July ii, at Bridgeport. Fourteen persons kiII- ed; scores injured. Wreck due to croeScver.
 Excursion train wrecked near Mid dletown, August 8. 1911. Sixty in- jured. Wreck due to defective rails.
 Springfield Express wrecked at Wesfport, October 3, l912 Seven killed; forty injured. Wreck due 10 crossoyer.
 Portland Express wrecked near NFil-. ford, Nov. 16. Due to defective track
 Merchants' Limited Express wreck ed near Greens Farms Noren,. CT 16. 16. Thirty-seven persons injured. Wreck due to track defect
 Fast freight wrecked at Putnam. November 17. One killed. Wreck due to collision, extra freight crashing fn- to regular from the rear
 ROADS STATEMENT.
 In giving out a statement as to the cause of the derailing of the Mer- chants Limited on Saturday night. the New Haven road said it was probably due to something dropping from one of the cars into the switch. Although no definite statements would be made as to what dropped it is un- derstood that the officials think it was 8 brake bolt that, as it fell, lodged in the frog of inc switch.
 The interstate commerce cols11sais- sion, today, again took up an inquiry of the New Haven road, inspectors beginning an investigation into the, wreck. Saturday night, of the Mer-s chants Limited express at Greens Farms and freight collision at Put. nam, Sunday morning when one train- man lost his life.
 Both express WrecIxs, the road ad-. naits, were due to accidents at switch es and tIie freight wreck due to care Iessness on the part of a flagman.
 Four bad passenger wrecks begin-, ming with the Federal wreck took place on the main line of the road within 8 few miles of each other
 Three wrecks in one day on the New Haven road have stimulated citizens along it's lines to high pitch of in-5 dignation and mass meetings of pro- test are to be held in not few bowns and cities. in the hope of stimulating the authorities to action
 Forty clergymen of South Norwalk and other towns in the neighborhood of New York spoke from their pulpits against the conditions that prevail Their action was precipitated by the wreck of the Merchants Express at Greens Farms. in which 30 people were injured, and there. was the narrowest magnitude to the wreck of the Federal Express, which occurred in Bridge port July Il, S11.
 Saturday was day of wrecks on press left the rails at Milford in the morning.
 Freights collided at Putnam. about midnight and one person was killed.
 In the early evening, occurred the wreck at Greens Farms.
 The railroad has, asserted, in a cident was caused becau uuse something gave way on train and dropped into a switch.
 But those who visited the neizF1bor- hood found the same sinister phenom- ena that had appeared at Westport when the Springfield Express was at Milford, where the Portland Ex- press left the rails.
 The road bed was in terrible shape The 4ties were rotten. Spikes were loose and could be pulled with the un- aided fingers.
 Today the Interstate Commerce Commission has inspectors on the ground inquiring into the cause of the two wrecks in this neighborhood.
 Inspectors Howard, Swasey, Hawley and Assistant Secretary McGinity
 Inspectors Bromley, Duffy and Lyon have been sent to investigate the wreck at Putnam.
 Grand Juror Henry C. Sherwood of Westport, in whose Jurisdiction the wreck occurred, was an early visitor on the scene. Coroner John J. Phelan also visited the ground. These off cials found the road bed in the same condition as at WeStport. ; The Merchants Express which was wrecked at Greens Farms Saturday night is one of the trains de luxe of the New Haven system. It consisted of six cars one being a combination mall and baggage, one a diner and the rest Pullman day coaches with an observation car in the rear Three arcs were detached entirely from the train and these were several hundred yards in the rear of the forward sec tion. With the exception Of the loco motive and the forward wheels of the mail car all of the other cars had been