Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1917-01-05

HOSplUdI hdklnS rive DcdUnS
from this Collision.
The Public Utilities Commission
of Maine held an investigation of
the wreck on the Grand Trunk be-
tween West Bethel aud Gilead on
Christmas eve, at Portland Friday.
December 20.
Conductor Albert G. Wentworth
of the eastbound freight, that crash
ed into a westbound freight, with a
consequent loss of five lives, admit
ted before the Public Utilities Com
mission that it was his duty to deliver
the orders to the engineer in person
and to stop his train by use of the
airbrake when it ran through Giead
without meeting the other train, but
that he did not do so. His brake
man, Alonzo l.. Bailey, was not sure
whether the westbound train was on
the siding at Gilead or not, and even
while they were discussing this and
Conductor Wentworth had his hand
on the airbrake, the fatal crash oc-
Cured.
Rear Brakeman Bailey admitted
that he did not see whether or not
the westbound freight was on the
siding at Gilead. Head Brakeman
Chester L. Lurvey of Island Pond
testified that the superseding order
to meet the Westbound freight at
Gilead instead of West Bethel was
not, so far as he could remember, in
the batch of orders that he carried
forward to Engineer Chase for Con-
ductor Wentworth at Gorham, N. H.,
so that they were running according
to orders as they understood them
when they ran past GiItad, although
Mr.. Wentworth had cautioned him
verbally that they were to meet at
Gilead. Herman C. Terrison of East
Deering, fireman of the eastbound
train, was one of the four who lost
their lives in the crash, the other
three being Engineer Leon Corliss,
Fireman r. P. Wilder and Head
Brakeman L. B. Pike of the west
bound freight which was proceeding
according to orders, and all of Island
Pond. Engineer w. L. Chase Of
Portland, who was running the
train that ran by it's siding, was con-
fined in the hospital at Berlin, H.
at the time Of the investigation and
the surgeons reported favorably on
his recovery. Chase, who was fear
fully burned, died Monday morning
at 10:40, having lived a week, suffer
ing intense agony except when under
the influence of opiates.
The first witness was Train De-
spatcher Burns, who testified to
sending out the orders for the meet
ing of freights 70S, westbound from
Portland, and 548, eastbound from
Island Pond, on the night Of Dec. "a.
The Hrst order was to meet at West
Bethel. This was superseded by an
order to meet at GiIead. He ex-
planned the system of giving orders
over the telephone, the receiving op-
orator reading back to the despatch
er and making three copies, one for
! himself, one for the conductor and
one for the engineer. He is supposed
to deliver one to the engineer, have
him read it back and sign his copy.
Operator Boucher testified to re-
ceiving the order for 70S to meet
548 at West Bethel and delivering it
to Conductor DevIn. The train left
South Paris at $50 pm.
: Operator Laroche of Bethel receiv-
ed the superSeding order for 708 to
meet 548 at GiIead instead of West
-, Bethel and handed it to Conductor
Devlin according to rules. The train
left Bethel at 1856 pm.
Operator Graham of Gorham, N.
H., received both the meeting orders
for 54S, the first one to meet 7OS at
West Bethel and the superseding
one to meet 708 at Gilead. They
| were both handed to Conductor
Wentworth at the same time togeth-
er with four other orders, and were
signed for by him. Train 54S was in
Gorham from 9:05 to $50 pm. He
testified that the telephone was
working all right until 1920, when
the collision occurred. Questioned
by Commissioner Shelton he said it
was customary to deliver both origi-
nal and superseding orders at the
same time unless the original had
| been annulled. He produced his
| copies of the orders, and also of the
clearance card, used in checking ur
| orders.
| ConductorDevin of the westbounG
| 708 testified to receiving both the or
| ders for meeting 548, both of which
he delivered to his engineer, Mr.
| Corliss, and obtained his signature
according to rules They left Bethe
at 9:56 for Gilead. When abou
three miles west of West Bethel a
| 1920 they collided with 548 on {
sharp curve. He sent back his real
brakeman to flag No. /, a passenger
train following, and ran forward
He met Conductor Wentworth 0.