Year: 1870

was open and the last car pitched end fore
most from the top of the highest part of
trestle and struck the car that had just gone
down ahead Of it, near the center on the
roof and passed entirely through it. crushing
i 70 pieces. Here was the greatest fatality.
| was thrown to the front end of last car
an went down with it, with forty or fifty
persons lying On me for twenty minutes.
crushing me very severely. In five minutes
after l was relieved from the wreck, | en-
| quired If Conductor Adams if he had sent
a man back to flag the approaching train; he
said he bad. :, also, ordered man to
Water Valley with the engine for physicians
and aid for the sufferers. Mr. John T. Wat
kins. u clerk in the superintendent Office,
was on the engine at the tine Of the accident;
after assisting few minutes to rescue the
tpassengers, he walked back to Oxford three
miles, and there met and notified the ap-
proaching train of the sad affair, and request
ed all the Physicians in. the place to 90 to
the aid Of these people, many of whom. as
well as citizens did So and gave every assist
ance in thei2 power. So much for the state.
ment that Mr.. Edgar miraculousIv saved
the approaching train, as stated ia some of
the newspapers l had a man stationed
more than quarter ola mile from the break
to stop it, and another walked three miles to
meet it, and did so, aud gave it notice, as
will appear from the certificates herewith
attached 1t will be seen from the state
IL, IL, IL


it reached TIE trestle, and that neither de
lective trestle nor track, could possibly have
caused the accident. 1t was simply one OF
those unfortunate accidents that has come
10y the breaking of machinery when the
train was running at regular schedule time
but happened at a most unfortunate spot.
where the cars fell q distance of forty feet.
and it Is well known that no cars are or can
be built, TO stand a fall of that distance
without being smashed up especially when
going at the rate of twenty miles an hour,
which speed is demanded by the public, and
Is not unusual. These cars were all new
and built in the most substantial manner.


For the satisfaction of the public, who
seem to have a Geverish anxiety about the
condition Of this road, l viii state, that after
the close Of the war, the whole Of the cross
ties on the road, had to be renewed, the
scarcity of labor and means to do this work
as rapidly as the public demanded it. rem
dered it necessary for the company to put in
every character Of timber and size and shape
of ties they could get Many of these ties
were decayed when l came on the road in
July, lS6 l commenced at once removing
these ties, especially joints, centers and
quarters, and have put down $50, 600 new
ties of the best quality since have had
, charge Of the road. I found it necessary to
contract for ties elsewhere than on this road
| have contracted for every tie l could get
on the rord; have increased the price
twenty five per cent and have contracted for
100000 cypress ties near New Orleans, and
5 600 more Sn Paducah and Gulf road to-
gether with all could get on the line of this
road; am now hauling and putting them in
the track as rapidly it can be done and
keep trains running Have put in ten thou
sand a mcnth fer the past seven months
have rebuilt every trestle and bridge on the
line as fast as it required it; have now two
steam pile drivers and a large bridge force
at that work; have recently imported a large
number of foreign labore-s, and expect
more; but l rrassert, that bad track is not
tie cause of the recent accidents on the road
as no engines have left the track. or beer
injured in any of our mishaps, nor have We
had but three engines off the track since
July, 1868, and two of them from broken
axles


l have endeavored to give plain, unVar
nished statement of all the facts in the case
1 submit them to the public and to al
practical railroad men, with entire confidence
that it will cxonorate the company anC
every man connected with it, from blame OF
censure SAM TATE, President,


Southern Railroad Association.


The Jackson Wing of last week, says: 4