The Washington herald., 1913-09-04
wreck inquiry
TORE THOROUGH
Interstate Commerce Com
mission viii Investigate
Disaster Carefully.
BELKNAP NOW ON SCENE
Government Agent Instructed to At
tend Inquest-Pullman Company
Asked for Data.
BELKNAP NOW ON SCENE

. E<NluenGe BeCdInt
that the Wallingford wreck on the New
Haven will result in some sort Of legis-
lation for the protection Of passengers
OF the railroads of the United States.
This slaughter by the railroads must
stop and we are going to see that some-
thing comes out of this wreck other than
publicity" was the comment of Inter
state Commerce Commission McChord
| who has charge OF the inquiry into the
New Haven disaster.
As one of the first steps in this gen.
| eral inquiry, the Interstate Commerce
Commission called on the Pullmcn Com
pany to submit a statement showing the
| number OF cars of wooden and steeel con-
| struction in its entire service.
! Assurances were given at the Com
| mission that the investigation to be con-
Quoted into the New Haven wreck. which
will begin tomorrow morning, will. be
nounced that the cars in the wreck werc
not destroyed Until the commissions in
lSpcctors had made an examination.
! Early yesterday the commission, how
1 ever had received an intimation that 4
| secret investigation was being made by'
| the Coroner at New Haven, and the Fed
| cral Commissioners Immediately took
! steps to head Off any such development.
! Inspectors Prrsence Desired.
| Commissioner McChord directed Chief
Inspector Belknap, who was on the scene
| o. the wreck. to insist upon being pres
| ent at all sessions OF the COroner's =
| inquest The inspector was instructed
| further to wire INN ediately to Washing
! ton if any obstacles were placed in his
! way. He was assured that the commits
sion would back him with all its power.
| Belknan was instructed also to have in
| spectors present at any investigation
| which the railroad might make.
Apparently the commission is suspic
! iuus that any secret investigation by the
railroads may include a coaching of the
witnesses preparatory to the formal in
curry TO be held by the Federal authori-
! ties.
Chairman McChOrd yesterday received
this message from Mayor Fitzgerald Of
! Boston:
I'm view OF the accident on the New
! Haven road. is there not some way in
which the Pullman Company can be COM
pellced to build steeel cars? Certainly this
company cannot plead poverty Of re-
sources Millions Of its present capital
gift to stOckhoIders- last twenty years.
Am sending same telegram to Massa-
chusetts Public Service Commission. but
| inasmuch as Pullman business largely in
terstate business think your board proper
authority to suggest legislation"
Before he received this telegram. Com
missioner McChord had wired to the
general manager of the Pullman Com
pany, at Chicago, as follows:
Commission desires your company to
furnish statement at the earliest possible
date showing number of cars used in
passenger train service. number of such
cars of wooden construction, of all-steel
construction, and OF steel underframe
construction; also number of cars now
under construction, and proportion OF
same OF wood, steel, and steel under
frame. This information imperdtively
needed for use New Haven wreck in
vestigation now in progress"
Commissioner McChord sent a reply TO
Mayor Fitzgerald, informing him what
he already had done.
This is the message which Commission
er McChord sent to Inspector Belknap at
New Haven:
Have man at all meetings of coroner
or railroad regarding wreck, to get what
is said and done. Our reports indicate
secret Investigations being held"
Line of LegisIatIon.
In speaking of what may be done to
safeguard the life of passengers, as a re-
suit of this wreck, Commissioner Nc
Chord said:
Il think that legislation should be
modelled after the safety appliance law
passed a number OF years ago. That law
required that all roads should completely
equip themselves with certain appliances
by fixed date, but authority was left to
the Commission, on proper showing. and
with certain restrictions, to extend the
time for particular roads. That law
proved very satisfactory in operation.
In the case of a road operating wooden
cars, there should be authority for the
Commission to impose necessary restric.
tiOns on its train operation. We could
say to the New Haven, for instance:
You are running very fast, heavy
trains, with intervals OF seven or eight
minutes between them. That Is too dan
Cerous when wooden cars are used.
Trains Of this class must be run further
apart, perhaps at twelve or fifteen or
twenty minute intervals, according as We
should determine necessary after investi-
CATION. Also the speed of these trains
must be brought down to a safe point,
so long as wooden cars remain in the
service
We will. before this is ended. investI-
gate the entire question Of comparative
cost of steel and wooden cars, their
respective lives in the service, the capaci-
ty of the country's manufacturers TO
turn them out, and other details. ] under
stand that the cost of the steel cars Is
about one-third more than of wooden
car of like capacity, but We have no de-
tailed data.
Neither do we know how long cars of
each type will last. or which is the cheap.
er in the long rur. My understanding is
that the steel cars have not been in
vogue long enough to give an accurate
answer to the question of their lifetime
of service. On the New Haven, though, |
we have found cars OF wooden construc- |
ton that have been in use since 1867"