The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1915-10-20
Engineer Powell Slightly Improved
but Chances for Recovery Small;
Conductor Cowan's Nerves
Shattered by Shock
COUNTY ATTORNEY
STARTS INQUIRY
Jury is Empaneied to Investigate
Cause Of Wreck; Division Supt.
Rupert Arrives to At
tend Hearing

lowering between life and death
very weak but fully conscious, Engi
neer Billy Powell OF ill-fated No. IL
lies in the Chickasha hospital today
slightly improved. but with heavy odds
against his ultimate recovery.
Fireman T. Carroll is dead, hav
ing succumbed at $50 o'clock yester
day evening, after having lain for
hours in a comatose condition.
Carrol's death adds the seventh to
the list Of fatalities from the disaster
Of Wednesday morning.
Bert" Cowan. conductor Of No. III,
is in the chickasha hospital suffering
with acute nervous prostration. His
condition may develop serious compIi-
cations at any moment
With the imminent passing into the
land Of shadows OF the engineer,
coupled with the extreme nervous ten.
sion under which the conductor is
struggling, the true reason why the
orders were run at Agawam may
now never be known. Railway men
advance the possible theory that
powell's watch may have been fast.
that he may have lain at Agawam until
1915 o'clock, as his orders required,
according 20 ais watch. and then
pulled out. This theory is given color
by the fact that No. II did not have
meeting orders with No. rs, but simp-T
wait orders wait for 9S until 1915
o'clock. Naturally railway men as
sert. such being the case. IL the engi-
neer's watch showed 1915 o'clock and
no 9S in sight. he might pull out for
the next station south
The rumor that Conductor cowan
might have been asleep and thereby
himself overlooked Powells running
his orders. has been. It is alleged, ex-
ploded by the train auditor who states
he and Cowan were sitting in the
Jim Crow coach talking when the
crash came,
The fallacy that a watch always
stops at the time Of an accident was
again disproved in this instance.
Powell's watch was still running when
he was carried into the hospital, and
Jim Cobb's watch, while il had
stopped had run until 3;es, approx
mately two hours from the time OF
the collision.
AT the hospital, while slight hope is
held forth that Engineer Powell may
pull through, his condition is consid-
cred extremely critical and the ply
sicians in charge will let no one, not
even railway officials, see him. Powell
is suffering from a compound fracture
OF the SKULL severe conclusions and
imminent danger Of menegial compli-
cations is feared.
Conductors Condition Serious.
Cowan's mental condition is feared
to be serious. He is said to be of an
extremely nervous temperament The
accident Of Wednesday morning hap
pened within a short distance of the
point where two passenger trains came
together head on, November, 1912. In
this collision. Cowans crew we're
found to be in the clear and he was
held blameless. He, as well as
Powell, are alleged to have been con-
sidered as being among the most re-
liable employees of the Rock Island on
this division.
Cowan, after the wreck, is said to
have hunted up farm house, phoned
the story Of the wreck to headquarters
and disappeared for the time He
showed up at the Chickasha Rock
Island offices about O'Clock yester-
day afternoon, wired for a pass to Fort
Worth and again disappeared Later
he was again located and taken in
charge by fellow railway men, talking
wild and acting wild" He was then
removed to the hospital where he has
remained ever since under the care OF
physicians
Bodies Of Victims Shipped.
The body OF Brakeman Southwark
was shipped TO Marlow this morning