The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1918-03-01
INQUEST HELD ON
DEAD FROM WRECK.
Corener's Jury Decides Rules OF
Caution Were Not Thoroughly
Carried Out by Crew of No.
IS. the Greenville Train.
(By John X. Aull.)

Atlas, j. y. MarS&dll, +u' "a Loe'AN'
P. F Baxter, Garah NJ. Pethei, w. W.
Richardson, Otis B. Brodie, ]. F. Ma
This. II. l.. ivester, Joseph F. Moats, W.
G. Tomlinson and Mrs. Sarah L. john
son came 10 their deaths by Train NO.
AZ. tom Spartanburg to Columbia
running into Train is, from Greenvliie
to Columbia, at or near Frost, occa-
stoned through the rules OF caution
heing not thoroughly carried out by
crew of Train No. 49, (the Greenvlli"
train,} was the verdict Of the coro-
ner's Jury this afternoon, as to the
cause of the frightful wreck on the
Spartanburg division of the Southern
railway, six miles above Columbia,
yesterday afternoon.
The ju.y was composed Of NJ. D.
Kirk, foreman; W. J. Jones, b. A.
Lorick, w n. Kirkland, L. W. Taylor,
and T. A. Berley.
Members of the two train crews
who figured in the disastrous wreck
on the Southern railway near here
yesterday afternoSsin in which twelve
persons lost their lives and thirty
seven others %erc injured, testifyins
before the eoroner's jury today, placed
the blame for the wreck upon Harve
Lockiier, flagman of the Greenvlhe
train. They asserted that when the
Greenyille train stopped to repair It's
airbrakes and the flagman went back
TO protect the rear. that he should
have placed two torpedoes three
quarters OF a mile back, and thiro
torpedo half way between that polnF
and the train, and when called in ne
should have taken up the third tor
-oedo and left the other two as caution
signals for an approaching train,
out that if an approaching train was
6ue within ten minutes<he should not
have come in to his train at all, even
in RESPONSE to signal, but should have
remained on the track with his flag.
Rheir testimony was positive that
they could have heard the explosion
of torpedoes if any had been placed
On the track. and that they heard no
such explosion Their testimony fur
ther tended to show that the Spartan
burg train was due within ten min
ates. and chat. therefore, Locklier
should have remained on duty with
the signal flag.
Locklier testified positively that he
did place all three required torpedoes
and said that it was his duty to re-
main with flag signal, if another train
was due within ten minuts, unless
called in by sisnal from his own
train, and that he went back to his
own train in response to signal.
A vivid description Of just how the
Spartanburg train, running forty-five
miles an hour, crashed into the rear
coach of the Greenyilie passenger.
like some great engine OF destruction
was told by Engineer F. B. Long, OF
the Spartanburg train. II was COM
ing in on that train" he said, "a2d
after passing Frost. about one-fourth
mile east of Frost, the fireman holler-
ed at me and said: Stop. put
the brakes in emergency and leaned
out of my Size Of tts window as far
as could, and saw No 1S just ahead
of me. About the time I saw them I
hit them. I just had time to get off
any seat-box and get down behind the
boiler head Engineer Long testi-
fed that he heard no torpedoes.
Fireman B. Strickland, of the same
train, testified that as they rounded
the curve, No. IS loomed up about
= three or four car lengths ahead OF
him. He was on the inside OF the
curve and. therefore, saw the train
ahead before the engineer had an op-
portunity to see it. No. is, he said.
seemed to be just starting to move
Off
In the main the testimony OF the va
rious witnesses was to the same gen.
eral effect, except that of Flagman
Locklier, of the Inflated Greenyille
train.
Flagman Locklier testified that he
had seen service as flagman For
twelve or fifteen years and stated
positively that he put out the two
caution torpedoes between half and
three-quarters of mile up the track,
and came back about half way to the
train and put olt the third torpedo
and when signal1ed to. come in ne
took up the third torpedo. left the two
caution torpedoes end got on the rear