The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1914-03-26
TWO MEN KILLED
IN M.8ST.L. WRECK
LIGHT ENGINE AND TRAIN 81
COME TOGETHER AT oLos.
CAUSED BY OVER LOOKED ORDERS
Engineer George Spare and Fireman
Leo Peterson Meet Death and
Fireman Henry r. Tlmm is
Severely injured.

Odds, March 23-Two killed and ono
injured Is the result of hcad.un col.
lision on the NJ. 4 st. l., Ry., eastern
division, about ono mile cast of Olds
station at 9:05 o'clock p. m. Satur-.
day, March 81. The dead are;
George Spare, engineer, Oskaloosa
Leo Peterson. fireman. Oskaloosa.
The injured are:
Henry II. Tlmm, fireman, ribs brok
en-, OSkaloosH
Cause of the wreck is attributed to
the unaCcOuntable overlooking or dis.
regard OF IN overdue freight by En.
gineer George Spare, who was run
ming light engine" to Elriclt juno
tion to help q heavy freight to Oska.
looSa. That Spare knew of the APP
preach Of freight No. ~ is certain,
for he had talked of the train with
other trainmen when he stopped at
Odds, and where passenger train No.
l06 passed him and made meeting
point with eastbound traffic.
Train No. 81, westbound, was de-
Ilayed by a hot box on car OF the
by double.header, d small engine,
No. 1874, engineer William Law in
charge and Fireman II. X. Timm. The
heavy engine, attached to the train
was No. 422, operated by Engineer
Il. Il. Alders and Fireman l., II. Con
InGrly. Conductor Win Russell was In
charge of train No. 81.
George spare and his light engine
crashed into the freight at the top
OF a hill and on q sharp curve. The
freight was moving not to exceed six
miles per hour when the crash came.
Extra No. 32y was moving at least
thirty.llye miles per hour, possibly
much raster than that when the Ell.
gines hit.
Engineer Law. was unaware of the
approach Of danger until the electric
headlight of the extra engine was fair.
ly in his face, not farther distant than
fifteen to twenty car lengths and the
Intervening space. was passed over in
: an instant, seemingly. Engineer Law
had only time to shut off steam, ap
. Iply breaks and then throw himself out
OF the cab window and probably thus
, lsaved his life Fireman Timm start
ed 10 get out through the gangway
but did not have time before the
crash, and was caught on the engine
He was squeezed into mass Of
= Wreckage and how he escaped with
only minor injuries is a mystery. The
, engine was reduced to mass oil
wreCkage.
On the second engine, Engineer Al
ders and fireman, not knowing what
was coming, did not have time to gel
out Of their engine before the ma
J chimes hit They answered the signal
for air and to stop and then saw the
trouble ahead Engineer Law had
stepped to the gangway between en-
CINE cab and tender when the en-
giucs came together.
The lone engine was reduced To- a
scrap heap.
Circustances connected with the &c
CidCnt seemed TO CUnspire to make
the collision possible. Engineer Law
: had no intimation that anything was
, wrong until the engines we're upon
each other. Four miles east OF the
station of Olds the track Is at the
top of a grade and the headlights OF
the waiting trains could be plainly
seen The track then dips down into
some low places and winds around
hills, but again appears On a crest
from which Mr.. Law again noted the
! headlights. One and q half miles
east of the station Is aotheT ridge or
: Crest, approached from both ways by
. a somewhat heavy grade and the top
is sharp curve. When train 81 was
' on the east side of this Hill the light
Iengine was on the west side. Engin'
Eeer Law was on the outside of the
; curve and could not have seen the
= Hight OF the approaching engine had
the track been level. He was first
warned of something unusually, how.
lever, by the light flashes of electric
: headlight, LaborinS up the grade the
double-header was now moving slowly
and the train was rapidly coming to a
stop when the collision occurred
Engineer Spare was quite dead
when found--his neck was broken
He had not moved from his seat and
, even his arm was resting naturally
falong the sill of his window. Fire.
man Peterson was cruelty manglsd
and hurt internally. He was buried
under mass of fuel that filled and
jammed into the cab. Much hard
work and the moVig of seven or eight
tons of fuel were required to release
the injured man. He was taken to
0lds Immediately and had medical az.
ttention, even before he was released
but he was fatally hurt and passed
away at 150 O'clock Sunday morn,
ing. =
Engineer Spare was to meet the
westbound passenger No. los, and the
freight, No. 81 at Olds. Also at this
station were several eastboand trains
waiting for the same meeting. No
3S9 was the last to arrive, preceding
the time OF the passenger. She head
ed into siding. waiting until the
passenger had gone. backed out, took
water and possibly fuel and then ran
down through the town 10 the east
lend of the yards. so all train. men
standing on the sidingss or talking on
the station platform supposed this
VAS the proper thing for Spare to- d.
~ ne was runniug q ghtsl could make
betteF time and should be hrst oni
bf1alowjnx the approaching train No
Every sappoaod that be Has
( I{JfIlE 70 The stock yal1R Switch Is
hack into .the clear and then head
nlt as enoh as sl.>. cfs'Ne |ftiAlil
had passed him. [>&I his en- CINE