Democratic Sentinel, Volume 17, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 October 1893 — CAUSED BY A MISPLACED BOLT. [ARTICLE]

CAUSED BY A MISPLACED BOLT.

Bow the .Fort Wayne “Limited" Was Wrecked at Whiting. A misplaced bolt derailed the first section of tho east-bound Fort Wayne “limited” at Whiting, Ind. It was a Pullman vestibuled train. and was crowded with Philadelphia Fair-goers and speeding along the stretch of track from South Chicago to Valparaiso at its highest speed. The passengers escaped destruction only by the courage of Engineer Jack Christy, who sot his brakes in the teeth of death and went down with his train as their sacrifice. The train of eight Pullman coaches, with dining-car and mail-car, was making its best time, in charge of James Breen, conductor, and Engineer John Christy. At Whiting the Fort Wayne Road crosses the Calumet terminal belt line. The crossing is guarded by tho interlocking system of switch signals controlled by an operator in a tc’.jvr. A bolt at the switch was taken from iiw place, the mechanism failed to act, and while the showed white and clear, the derail switch still lay open, though all unknown. As the ponderous engine No. 202 reached the obstruction it turned like a flash and with a roar buried itself deen in the sand of the ditch on its side, with engineer and fireman buried beneath it. The tender followed, the mail car reared high in the air, and followed the engine and tender. The passenger coaches kept tho track, and the strong steel frames of the Pullmans refusing to telescope, the passengers escaped uninjured. Rescuers hurried to the scene and found Fireman Werner dying from his wounds under the engine. Before pick and showel could be raised in his behalf death had released him. Engineer Christy was taken out as quickly as possible and removed to a neighboring room, where he will probably die from his scalds and a fractured skulL