Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 35, Number 97, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 August 1903 — Wallace’s Train Wrecked. [ARTICLE]

Wallace’s Train Wrecked.

The Worst of Their Many Misfortunes Occured Friday. All of the various mishaps and misfortunes the Wallace oirous has heretofore met with this year have dwindled to nothing compared with what happened to them early Friday morning, at Dnrand, Mioh. One section of the train had reaohed the yards and stopped, and the section whioh was half an hour behind ran into the rear, of the front seotion, under faat speed. The oanse being the failure of the airbrakes of the seoond train to work.

Three oars of the stationary first seotion were telescoped, and the engine and five oars of the moving train were demolished. The rear oar of the first section was a caboose, in whioh the trainmen were sleeping, ahd the next two were filled with sleeping oirous employes. The greatest loss of life was in the oaboose. One of the wrecked oars of the seoond seotion was ooupiecT by five elephants and several oamels. One of the elephants and two oamels were killed outright, while the other animals and their trainer esoaped With the exception of this oar, none of the menagerie was wrecked, the other demolished oars oontaing oanvas or wagons, and there was comparatively little excitement among the wild animals. As soon as they reooved from the first shook the trainers rushed among the cages, quieting the few beasts that were excited. The elephants in the wreoked oar behaved with surprising oalmness and were led oat of the wreck without trouble. Twenty-three persons were killed, or died soon after their injuries; and 27 others were severely □jured, some of whom will probably die.