The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1913-09-06
ROBBED BODIES d
WRECK VICTIM,
New Haven Wreck Scene
Wholesale Stealing,
DANGER SIGNALS IGNORE

Engineer of Bar Harbor Train Teif
of Risks Taken During Foss-G,N
Iision Narrowly Averted Half Hou
Before WalIinqford Catastrophe. &
New Haven, Conn.,, Sept. Cha
there were wholesale and disgracefI
robberies from dead bodies at the raj
road wreck at North Haven on Tues
day morning is declared by Corone
Mix in a report 10 Chief of Polio
Smith, requesting him to apprehen]
the culprits.
In the investigation before the u
terstate commerce commission tire
witnesses testified that engineers q
the New Haven railroad frequentH
pass danger signals of the banjo
type in foggy weather without stor
ping.
1t was further testified that gthl
White Mountain express. the trail
which plunged into the Bar Harb0
express, was barely saved from collid
ding with the Bar Harbor train Al
hour before the North Haven disaster
This was at point between Spring
field and Hartford, where, according
to the testimony of the engineer, ths
White Mountain was tagged by G. II
Murray, of the Bar Harbor train.
The two trains involved were ths
last of a procession of six which tina
morning pasesd Wallingford, thres
miles north of the wreck, within-a pc
riod of thirty-two minutes. The Whit
Mountain, last of the six, was making
fifty-two miles an hour at Wallingford
An order to stop the White Noun
tain train at Wallingford, which would
have prevented the wreck, was res
cinded, it was brought out.
Flagman Murray testified that hi
had gone back to place danger signail
to protect his train as far as coule
until was recalled by my engineers
whistle"
The fagman also etestifed that ht
had never, been examined for flag
man and had never qualified for thal
position.
At the opening of the federal inyes
tigation into the New Haven wrecl
Commissioner c. C. McChord, of thu
interstate commerce commission, or
dered General Manager Bardo. of ths
New Haven road, to produce the min
utes of all meetings of the New Ha
ven directors since the BridxepQ13
wreck On July u 81 n q z
lslsor i ! sslll, = 6 =
taken toward the betterment d ale
ty conditions. .
The examination of witnesses brist
led with startling passages. Engineer
Wands, of the .ill-fated Bar Harbor ex
press, brought gasp from the crowd
when he testified that engineers on
the New Haven road frequently
"drifted by danger signals in foggy
weather.
John C. Kelly, train dispatcher, had
previously testified that weather con
ditions on the morning of the wreck
were every foggy," but that he had
not considered it necessary to warn
trains to reduce speed,
Six trains passed over this stretch
of track within half an hour, he said
The White Mountain. express made
the fastest time of any of them, its
time sheet showing an average speed
Of fiftytwo miles an hour just before
it crashed into the Bar Harbor train
''Did any of the trains have any in
formation from you as to how close
they were together?" asked Chief In
spector Belknap, of the interstate com
merce commission.
mo; l didn't think they needed it,
replied the dispatcher.
On the eve of the opening of the
federal inquiry August B. Miller, en-
gineer of the White Mountain express
and Charles H. Murray, flagman of the
Bar Harbor express, the two trains in
volved in Tuesdays wreck, were for
mally placed under arrest by Coroner
Mix, charged with having "criminally
caused the death of Royal H. Hotch
kiss one of the victims of the disas
ter.
They were both placed in $4,000 bal
under a coroner's warrant, effective
until twenty-four hours after the coro
ner has rendered a verdict in the in
quest into the catastrophe which he
began in private Thursday.
Bail for Miller was furnished by ths
local Brotherhood of Locomotive En-
gineers and Firemen. Murray was
locked up for lack of a bondsman.
Towns Only Lawyer Dies