Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-06-07
LIMITED WRECKED
BY UNKNOWN PERSON
Spikes Removed From Rails
and Entire Train Is De-
rallied as Result.
NO ONE is BADLY HURT
Steel Coaches Again Demonstrate Su
periority and Only RunllinS Gear
Is at All Injured

spikes out of section of the track
near the School for the Feeble Minded
and derailed the s. P. Willamette Limit
ed passenger train this morning at 9:1S.
Two day coaches loaded with passengers
were turned nearly half over on the
right of way and the mail and baggage
cars were thrown from the track, No
one was killed, and but few injured
slightly.
The entire train, consisting of an en-
gine, two day coaches, observation, mail
and baggage was derailed, but did not
tip completely over.
Joe Langford, news agent, sustained
the most serious injury. He was bang
ed up against the end of agear and-sts-
severe@eaG His home is at 3l2
Main street, Portland
Mrs Isabella Woods, of Sweet Lake
was thrown clear over her son and land
ed against the side of the car. She sus
tanned bruises, but was not seriously
hurt.
That some one is responsible for the
wreck is certainty in the minds of
the railroad heads. At first it was be-
lieved that the rails had kinked during
the warm weather prevalent recently,
but E. Bennett, farmer residing near
the School for the Feeble Minded, m.
earthed evidence that tends to show
that some one pulled the spikes out Of
the ties for a distance of about ten
feet Mr.. Bennett, in passing through
a fence along the right of way, discOv-
cred "pinch-bar, " tool used for the
purpose of lifting spikes out of ties
Further investigation on the part of the
railroad officials revealed the fact that
the spikes lying along that section Of
track which was still intact bore marks
of the pinch bar and that the abrasions
on the rail holders corresponded iden
tically with the shape of the claw-likC
end Of the bar.
There has been no section crews
working in the vicinity of the spo
where the wreck occurred.
Engineers Story Verifies.
That spikes must have been removed
prior to the arrival of the Limited wa
verified when Engineer John S. Mont
gomery declared that he noticed th
east rail suddenly raise and swerve t,
one side when the engine was about u
yards from the place where the cars lief
the track He yelled to the fireman an
applied the emergency brakes, reducing
the train s speed to 90 miles an hOul
Had the rails had a tendency to sprea
when properly spiked, the spreadin
would not have taken place until tn
engine or car weights were upon then
Railroad detectives have been sun
moned from Portland to investigate tn
2 case and although the guilty person
cannot be even suspicioned as yet,
thorough and rigid investigation will b
carried on by the company
The engine stayed upright after tt
.derailment, the wheels on one side b
ing Just inside the rails. The en-
coaches landed against telegraph poll
and held the middle coaches from ii
ping over. The engine ran about
train length after being derailed al
the track was badly torn up. The tel
graph wires were broken when Il
coaches crashed against the poles
Engineer Montgomery and Firemi
II. II. Thomas escaped uuiniured. Co
ductor George Peebler was in charge
the train.
Miss A Collision. a pretty o. A.
Junior. was on her way from Coryal
to Aberdeen, Washington.
~ was sleeping when the derailme
came and thought we were going do'
grade al a rapid rate, she said to
Capital Journal reporter, who was
first newspaper man to reach the see
az woke up and soon the day coach v
a mass Of screaming people. Th
crawled around and tried to get out
the windows. Finally we found