Evening star., 1921-03-01
MANDAMUS AGAINST COR RONER
ASKS INQUEST IN INDIANA WRECK
H. O, Seipel Condemned in Proceedings
for Withholding Names of Partly Identi-
fed dDead-Telegrapher Tells of Crash.

, mothers body was identified last
| night; Mrs. Lillian Waggoner of Bat
tie Creek. Mich. and Mrs. Katherine
Arney. Chicago. Her husbands body
was identified yesterday
Tells Of Ghastly Crash.
Charles Whitehead. teIegrapher in
the signal tower which regulates the
passage Of the trains over the cross
ing. last night, for the first time, gave
| his version of the events preceding
and during the collision. He substan-
tiated the statement Of Joe Cook, op-
orator Of the fifty-six levers in the
tower that the signals were set
and exonerated Cook Of any blame for
the disaster
whitehead. too unstrung to talk
, connectedly, was back at his job, out
wardly calm.
II send and receive all messages
telling when various trains will ar
rive. he said. Il have nothing to do
with the operation of the signals and
am not considered in any way re-
sponsible for them. Ordinarily, a man
named Pfering runs the levers. but he
! wanted to take night off and hired
zoe COOK. who Is substitute opera
tor. to work for him.
Both Men ION Their Toes"
Because of the mass of switches,
anu tne intersection. both of
US must be on our toes all the time
and we were. Far down each track is
an appliance which rings a bell in the
tower when train hits it. When we
heard the bell we saw it was the New
YORK Central. About thirty seconds
Iater the Michigan Central bell rang
Joe set the signals against the Michi-
gan Central and opening the track for
the New York Central We sat peer-
ing down the New York Central
tracks. watching the headlight gradu-
hadn't noticed the Michigan Central,
The New York Central engine
gradually grew larger and larger, and
hnally its outlines were plainly visi-
Bile. Suddenly I heard Joe shout:
ing through the block
Saw Trnin Coming Fnst.
Il can stiil hear that shouted warn
ing. / turned quickly to the right. and
there. not $50 feet away, was the
Michigan Central, No. 20, crashing
down. at sixty miles an hour. 1t was
SO close / could see the spaces between
the fender bars. Joe jumped for the
door and I jumped after him.
We heard a terrific grinding smash.
There was hiss Of steam, a brilliant,
red glare lighted up the tower and our
little building shook all over. The
crashing of glass-the tower windows
ears,
tower continued to rock
We lay against the door for a mo-
ment. and then collapsed to the floor.
A few seconds later, I suppose, Joe
got up and dashed downstairs / fol-
| lowed him. When we reached the
ground Joe was running full speed up
the road to Chesterton. two miles
| away. was told that he never
stopped until he reached there. al-
though several persons tried to halt
him.
Dreamed OF Coming Glare.
II went down to the wreckage. The
| conductor of one of the trains came up
and tried to ask me something. He
couldn't talk. he was shaking so, and
guess I couldn't have answered.
don't remember much after that I
went home. but could not sleep. l kept
seeing those two giaring headlights
they seemed misunderstanding down
on NE. l dreamed of them. and l must
have tossed a lot, for ! several times
picked the bed clothes off the floor
I'm all right now. but thank God
for my escape. Fortunately the cars
fell away from the tower. Otherwise
l wouldn't be telling you this"
Whitehead explained that the signal
tracks could not have been open at the
| same time. Closing the track to the
Michigan Central automatically OPEN
ed it to the New York Central. and
vice versa, he said.
N. Y. Central Running Slowly.
Whitehead said the Michigan Gem
trail probably was making sixty miles
an hour. but that the New York Cen
trail was travelling slower-probably
forty miles an hour.
They always travel nearly full
speed, but the New York Central
train seemed to be coming slower than
usual. Perhaps the engineer saw the
other train and tried to STOP" White
head said.
Cook was unable to work last night,
but was not needed. Every train on
both roads was ordered to stop before
reaching the wreckage and to pro-
ceed only by hand signal. All derail-
ing switches were locked and all
blocks were set against oncoming
trains. A special crew of signal men
guided the trains in their slow prog
ress over the crossing.
VICTIM SECRETLY MARRIED.