The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1916-10-05
Louis Doyer Was Cut to Piec.
es and Dumped in Creek
Near Gale.
HENRY DONALDSON, SIS,
ESCAPED WITH HIS LIFE
Men Were Hit from Rear as Two
Freights Were Passing on
Double Track.

were struck by an Iron Mountain
freight train one mile north of Gal,
on the East Side.
The man who was killed was Louis
Dover, Farmland, and member O.
an old family on the East Side. Hi!
companion who was dangerously in
jured, was Henry Donaldson, farme
living a mile mort hof Gale, who wa!
young Dover's employer.
Dover was 23 years old and Donald
son, who is well-known in the Cape, i!
E55 years old. Dover's body was liter
ally cut to pieces by the wheels of thu
train as it passed over him. Donaldson
owes his life to the fact that he wa
thrown to the side of the track. H,
was knocked unconscious by the blow
and all his injuries are internal.
Two Of the Bower boys have beer
working for Mr.. Donaldson on his farm
which lies along the Cotton Belt dou
BILE track that extends north from Gale
Louis and his brother, Frank, both are
sons of Henry Dover Sr., farmer whc
lives two miles east of Gale. Dover
was one of seven brothers.
Yesterday morning Donaldson ant
the two brothers together with a mar
named Pink Callans, who also worked
for Donaldson, started to their work il
a corntield north of the farmhouse
Frank Dover and Callans rode in {
twagon, Donaldson and Louis Dover
walked.
While enroute, the two men walk.
ing, wished to shorten the route anC
got into the railroad right of-way anc
walked along the track. The Other
men were in the wagon driving about
even with them in the roadway which
at that place runs beside the railroad
tracks.
The party was going north, and
when they were a half mile north OF
| the house, the two men stepped from
the southbound track into the north,
| bound track to avoid being run down
by southbound heavy freight train
that was approaching.
AS the freight passed the two men II
moved between the walkers and the
two men on the wagon. Before the
freight had gotten past, light, fast
Iron Mountain freight came up from
the rear. The approach of the sec
ond train was drowned by the sound of
the passing cars, so that both men on
the track were hit when they had had
no warning whatever. Young Dover
was walking in the middle of the track
and Donaldson was at the side of one
of the rails.
Dover's was Knocked down and the
wheels of the engine passed over him,
cutting off the right leg and right arm.
His body at the same time was rolled
along the track by the force and mo-
mentum of the train for distance of
about so feet till it was eventually
pushed off the track and dropped in
the water of creek where the rail-
road track crossed on a small trestle.
The other two members OF the party
who were in the wagon could not see
the accident because the longer freight
train was passing between them and
the track where the accident occurred.
The engineer of the northbound
freight stopped his train as soon as
possible. Members of the crew aided
in lifting the parts of Dover's body
out of the water of the creek and the
right arm which was severed at the
shoulder never was recovered.
Other members of the crew and men
who assembled at the place in short
time gave emergency treatment to
Donaldson. As soon as the crew had
aided in getting Dover's body aside
and had been satisfied that Donaldson
would be cared for, they boarded the
train and continued.
When both trains had passed on,
Frank Dover learned that his brother
had been killed.
The body was taken to Thebes yes
terday, afternoon where an inquest was
held. DR.. R. B. Hitler of Thebes vas
summoned to Donaldson's side. He
reached the man 40 minutes after the
and it required nearly two
hours work to restore him to con-
seriousness. No bones had been broken
but it is believed that he sustained
severe internal injuries.