Plattsmouth weekly journal. (Plattsmouth, Neb.) 1881-1901, April 19, 1901, Image 1

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    MttsmoMtlh We;
J out um
' J;
Vol. 21 No. 17
FRIDAY. APRIL 19 1901
$1.00 per Year
My
t
STRIKES
LANDSLIDE
How Passenger Train No. 8
lided With Bank of Dirt.
Col-
Scenes About the Accident at Chilli's Point
Where Fireman More Was Caught
Under EnQind.
When Burlington passenger train
No. 8. which loft Omaha Tuesday eve
ning on time at 7:40 o'clock, and run
ning at tlie rate of fifty miles an hour,
piled, without a moment's warning,
into a small mountain of a landslide,
heaped .-twelve feet high uxn tlie
tracks at Child's Point, the wonder is
that the whole train engine, couches,
passengers and all did not take an
awful and fatal plunge into the river,
winch Hows close beside the track.
As it was. circumstances conspired -to
render all the factors of a frightful
accident comparatively innocuous, for
all save the fireman and the ill-fated
engine.
The story of the wreck, in all of its
details, is an interesting one showing
not only wiiat a small thing may cause
a holocaust, hut also how small ano
ther factor of apparently equal insig
nificance may perfectly stay an im
pending horror.
Fast trains and heavy freight trains
had thundered past the point all day.
and the engineers and trainmen, much
as a matterof habit. had taken squints
at the brow of the bluff, but no one
saw signs of anything amiss. The
forces of nature often work unseen,
and as silently as the passing of the
years
Long ago along the top of that bluff
someone dug a flitch parallel with tlie
face of the cut to drain spring floods
and melting snow awav from the
tracks. Then the ditch was probably i
forgotten. The trees shedding their j
leaves in the fall, tilled its mouth. mak- j
ing a perfect dam. and the water, m-
stead of flowing out. sined down
tliromrli t Ik- ivmiiK siiil llinl lil
. r .,;..., . j . . ,. ,i ,,, :
bluff the huge mass of earth W(llMd ,
have tx'en no more readily and surely
lct :n-l ie. I I'it.:illv 11..' w:itr nnil lhi
A quaking of the earth from passing , "gingii.g to his sand and broke lev
trains, accomplish 1 what it WouI(1 1 crawled in a daze through his win-
1 .1 ... I.: .1. . ..1 . l... i.; lrl
have taken a I'oree of men weeks to
.u.rfrn, n,i t!. ,.r . '
bluff, trees and all. shot downward j
like the mighty avalanche it was. !
That was probably about l o'clock in
RNIMrW HI1! ftlMlRV
UUlllDJJ illlDUllll !
Leading X.ocal Professional
Men Commended to the
Patronage of its Readers
by The Journal.
DENTISTS.
C. A. flARSHALL, D.D.S.
Dental Hooms. Fitzgerald Block.
All Wokk j'ii:srCi.ss -Guaranteed
Plattsmouth, Nebraska.
I'lalls. 'J'l.i.in s
i Ul.Ve l
i Ki s 21.5
W. B. ELSTER,
DENTIST.
OFFICE: Plattsmouth,
Waterman Block Nebraska
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
D. O. DWYER
Lawyer
I'LATTSMOrni
N KIMS ASK A
SPURLOCK & TIDD
Attorneys and
Counsellors at law.
lOVLV IILOCK - PLATTSMOUTH
John M. Ley da,
LAWYER
Reliable Abstracts of Title.
WATEKMAN BLOCK.
attorney at T.a.-w
WETTENKAMP E L K PLATTS
hiped to market ly the allotted 'time
the evening. No one saw it fall, and
the crumbled earth lay, waiting for
the next train.
Engineer Frank Moore is not the
man to allow tlie rust to grow under
the wheels of his engine, especially
when he is driving a "long-legged"
machine like the speedy 204. Yet he
was making no more than schedule
time in jumping around the sharp re
verse curves between G ibsnn and Belle
vue. With such a piece of track lie
could not see the rails hair the time
for the Ix iler head of his engine. It
was yitch dark. On tlie right rose the
steep, towering bluff, on the left a
strip of wooded low land, narrowed
down to where at Child's point the
track and river, converging, form two
sides of an acute angle, and where, if
a train should leave the rails, it likely
would make a ffying switch into the
old river steamer route to St. Louis.
Fireman Robert Moore was working
his shovel, filling the fire lox. Engin
eer Moore drew his head in from the
window a moment to glance at the
steam gauge. The next moment he
Im iked out and saw. what might have
made him believe himself dreaming
! I Ie saw just in front of the cowcatcher
! of his engine the rails disappearing in
! a huge bank of earth. There was just
j time to shut off steam and to grab in-
i stinctively for the brake and sand lev
ers when the engine struck the
obstruction with a shuddering roar,
and hurled itself high upon the land
slide, at the same time breaking the
coupling and freeing the two coaches
from its destructive plunge. Then
the engine stuck its nose in the mud
bank and rearing upon itspilottrueks
turned a half somersault, and reeling
upon one side, floundered down the
steep embankment to the w ater's edge,
where it lay kicking up the mud with
its flying drivers, snorting spasmodi
cally from the stack, half tilled with
soft dirt, and loosing harsh, discord
ant screams from severed steam pipes.
The fireman, crushed beneath the
hoilcrhead, one of the injector pipes
run like a spear through his thigh, the
ponderous weight of the big machine
uHn his two legs, a thin stream of
i scalding water playing upon his head
and
breast, enveloped and stifled in
blinding clouds of steam,
raised his
cnesot agony high almx-the din of the
; dismantled engine. lhe engineer,
itliroivn frimi wul In tciflt vpt. vtill
uow, which opcucu aoove mm iikc a
sky H-ht, and standing on the splint-
ered side of his cab, looked about him
upon a scene fitfully lighted by the
scattered coals from the firebox of his
engine.
Of the coaches he couid see nor hear
"i first thought was that
they had toppled into the river after
being freed from the engine. The ten
der of the engine stood at right angles
to the overturned machine. Even in
the excitement and bewilderment of
the moment he noted with surprise
that scarcely a piece of coal had been
lost, although the iron sides were bat
tered in likecrushed egg shells and the
trucks had been shorn anvay as though"
w itli a knife. Then above the shrill
din he heard the screams of his fire
man. In the combination coach Byron
Clark laced A slier ('lark who sat with
his back to the engine.. (.us I lager,
the contractor, occupied a seat in the
same car.
Suddenly, without a mo
ment's warning, Byron Clark felt him
self raised from his seat and hurled
violently against Asher Clark. Gus
I lager shot over a half dozen seats and
finally came to a hall with his head
braced against the i-.rward end of the
car. Jn the rear coach the passengers
soared over the backs of the seats or
slid down the aisle, every one finding
himself the next moment wedged into
some portion of the forward end of the
ca r.
The occupants of both coaches made
a hurried break for the doors even as
they felt the coaches leaving their
trucks and catapulting along on their
bottoms through the yellow clay like
so many toboggans. In all the excite
ment of the moment Byron Clark
paused instinctively to grope under
his seat for his lost hat. On leaving
the coaches the passengers stepped
straight out upon the heaped upearth.
The cars had left the tracks on the
left hand side, and by-force of their
own momentum would liave plunged
into the river but for the great bank
of earth heaped upon that side of the
track.
Again it is probata that the first
coach would have telescoped or over
turned the rear coach but for the fact
that the solid blind end of the combin
ation car was turned toward the car
behind, leaving no fragile platform to
be crushed in by the first impact of
the collision.
The sounds of escaping steam and
the piteous cries of the fireman guided
Conductor Shepherd and the passea-
at-the prisoner. Half of the crowd
consisted of women. Despite the ef-
gers to the wrecked locomotive. There .
they worked for three hours digging ,
about the unfortunate man before they
could release him. A young hospital
steward from Fort Crook happened to
be aboard, and he dressed the wounds
of the fireman and cared for him until
the arrival of the special train from
Omaha.
All that night and until 10 o'clock
the next day the wrecking crews work
ed clearing up the track, which they
found to have been moved outward
some ten inches by the rush of the
slide of earth.
An accident following closely upon
aud caused bv the wreck has not as
yet been chronicled. In hurriedly as
semblingagangof section men inOma'
ha to shovel away the dirt, the fore
man of the job gathered in our own
Jack Beeson by sheer force. and almost
before he was aware of it Jack was
actually working down in the cut with
a shovel In his hands, giving a very
good imitation of a man who is used
to doing something for a living.
Lcmisville
Special Correspondence.
Chas. A. Richeyand Dr. Ilasemeier
were Omaha visitors Wednesday.
James Patterson and family visited
with reiitivesand friends in the coun
ty metropolis last week.
George L. Mutz and wife are In Ok
lahoma this week L. C. EickhofT,
land agent for the Rock Island, will
show them over the country and prove
why that is the only place to invest in
real estate.
J. Schimpfke, who has been em
ployed as clerk in the general merch
andise store of Stander Bros, in this
city for more than two years, will de
part in a few days for Wahoo. The
girls are very sorry to see Joe go.
At a meeting of the city council
last Tuesday evening Chas W. S pence
was selected as city marshal, and M.
Tritsch clerk for the coming year.
Who's mayor? I don't know.
Otto Becker was reading signs in
I'lattsmonth last Wednesday.!
C. I. Tapper started for California
last Tuesday, where he expects to lo
cate, if the climate provrs beneficial
to his health. Mr. Tapper is one of
the early settlers of Cass county, hav
ing resided here for more than thirty
years.
Mrs. J. A. Ilasemeier, who has been
dangerously ill for some time, is much
improved, and her many friends are
now hopeful of her early recovery.
Cedao Creek
(From Our Special Correspondent.)
Corn shelling has taken a new start.
Since corn reached 3.3c the farmers are
rushing it in.
Adam Stoehr and Miss Lizzie Borne
were Plattsmouth visitors Sunday.
Edward iLonnes bought a fine new
buggy last week.
The men who are engaged at work
in the stone quarries have been obliged
to lay off a greater part of the time
lately on account of the bad weather.
. Mrs. Chris Gauer, the aged mother
of Chris and Johnnie Gauer, died at
her home near here at .'$ o'clock Tues- !
day morning, of pneumonia contract
ed from a case of grip of long stand
ing. The funeral was held Thursday
morning.
J. J. Horn's baby is sick with wiioop
ing cough.
Elmwood
(From Our Special Correspondent.)
While standing in front of the furn
iture store last Tuesday noon, Frank
Baker was accidentally shot in the
lejt leg, the ball entering below the
knee and making a very painful flesh
wound, says the Elmwood Review. Dr.
Neely removed the ball and dressed
the wound. Wednesday Frank was
down town awhile but he was not so
well yesterday.
The person who fired the shot has
not been discovered as yet, and it
seems that no one heard the report of
the gun, so that the surroundings of
the affair remain a mystery. We pre
sume that the person who did the
shooting is keeping very quiet about
the affair. This should be taken as a
warning by those who have been doing
shooting on tlie main street with tar
get rifles. "
Mvirra.y
Murray Harness Co.
T. H. TOLLIF , Mgr.
Rest und newest of everything
HA D Kl CTQQ BLANKETS. NKI8
nnlN COO ROBE", WHIPS.
SADDLES, BRIDLES, ETC.
Is expected to add at least- -.nts tc
the price of every broou he sells.
Manley
LILLIAN TIOIIK, EDITOH.
Mr. Basmussen was able to resume
llis school duties Monday, after a two
Weeks' illness.
-Simon Bornemeier ishauling lumber
f6r the erection of a liarn on his farm
tfest of Man ley.
;P.W. Tighe came down from Omaha
Friday and spent a day with his par
ents. He is preparing to move out to
ilorado next month.
Wm. Sheehan's team, hitched to a
Mfcilk cutter, ran away one day last
wjeek, but was captured before any in
jury had been inflicted upon them
stjlves or the machine.
'.John Murphy's two little girls, aged
two and three years, narrowly escaped
death last Sunday. They were playing
about the house, apparently in their
usual health, when both were taken
suddenly and alarmingly ill suffering
frtim nausea and intense pain. The
fact of both being attacked at the
salne time and in precisely the same
manner, led the family to suspect
poisoning, and simple antidotes were
administered, while Dr. Butler was
hastily summoned from Weeping Wa
ter by telephone. When he arrived
the children were loth unconscious,
and only prompt and vigorous action
saved their lives. Tlie case was pro
nounced one of arsenic poisoning, al
though the family is at a loss to tell
how the little ones obtained the poi
son. A thorough search of the house
and yard failed to disclose anything of a
poisonous nature, unless some green
wallpeper, which the children might
possibly have chewed, could come un
der that head.
Mr. and Mrs. Frank Grauf, of Rock
Bluffs, visited several days last week,
with August Glaubitz and family.
The eighth grade examination, for
pupils of the public schools, arranged
by Superintendent Smith, will be held
in Manley sometime soon the exact
date has not yet been announced.
Farm work is progressing or ratner
is not progressing. The heavy frost of
the 17th was a surprise for this time
of the year. "April showers bring
May flowers," showers of a certain
kind do, perhaps but not the wintry
rains which we have been treated to
since the month opened.
At last the corn market lias done
what the farmers have waited impa
tiently for to touch the 3.x.' mark.
This is a decided improvement on the
price four years ago this month.
A number of people from around
Manley attended the Gaebel sale, near
Louisvile on the 18th.
MynaLrd
(From Our Special Correspondent.)
We look for better weather with the
new moon.
Mrs. J. Gapen visited her daughter
at riattsmouth one day last week.
Cliff IIublell will work for Peter
Berry thss summer.
W. T. Gillespie, the stock and grain
buyer, shipped a car of hogs to Omaha
this week.
Robert 1'ropst, who was quite sick
t last week, is reported better.
Mr. and Mrs. Will Spangler, of
Weeping Water, attended Sirs. Ran
som Cole's funeral last Sunday.
Henry Trout has secured employ
ment in the B. & M. blacksmith shop.
The turnpike east of here is in al
most an impassable condition.
'Mr. George Spangler and wife of
Lincoln, came in last Saturday to at
tend his sister's funeral.
C. C. Spangler, of Eight Mile Grove,
shelled and delivered his corn to A. S.
Will.
Fall wheat look fine.
There are prospects for a bountiful
fruit harvest this year.
Mrs. N. E. Sage, of Alliance, is vis
iting her nieces, Mrs. Oscar Gapen and
Mrs. Wilbur Hall.
Minnie Will attended church at Ot
terbin last Sunday evening.
Will Jean visited riattsmouth Sun
day night.
There will probably be a larger acre
age of corn this year on account of the
late season for small grain.
A. L. Cox, Our genial merchant, is
For Rent
BUILDING FOi BLACKSMITH SHOP.
Ample room Excellent location,
on main roads east, west, south
and west through Mynard
Terms reasonable Great chance
for good blacksmith. For partic
ulars inquire of
J.M.KISER,
Mytrard, or Plattsmouth Journal office.
as to the quality of armor. Other
claims will he made for delay in fur-
i
' nursing a very sore fxit.
J Mr. Charles Spangler, sr., and daugh
ter of Louisville, passed through here
en route home from the county seat.
Timothy Tut'KMrcii.
Weeping Water
Ezra Mitchell died at the home of
his (laugher, Mrs. Hammer, in the
third ward, Monday evening, says the
Republican.
Mr. Mitchell was in his !4th year,
and had been feeble for a long time.
He was an early settler in Avoca pre
cinct. An aged wife, one son, Bart Mitch
ell of Missouri, and two (laughers, Mrs.
Morton of Falls City, and Mrs. Ham
mer of this place, are left to mourn
the loss of a dear companion and lov-!
ing father. The remains were laid to
rest in Oakwood cemetery.
Eagle
Simh'IuI Corn's pondenee.
Thursdaj' morning when Fred Ob
erle went o.ut to the barn he was very
much surprised to find one of Ii is horses
missing, says the Eagle Beacon. Up
on investigation he found that a thief
had been visiting his premises during
the night and had taken horse, har
ness and buggy. He came to town at
once and telegraphed to Lincoln for
Malone and his blood hounds. They
came out on the morning train and
went out at once to the scene of the
theft. At the time of going to press
it is not known how they succeded.
Union
(From Our Special Correspondent.)
The sad news of the death of Mrs.
Johnson caused sorrow in many homes
in this village and the surrounding
country. She died Tuesday morning,
April 9, at the home of her daughter,
Mrs. Bion Merchant, near Elgin, Neb.,
says the Union Ledger. Her health
had not been good the past two years,
and she suffered constantly during the
winter. About three weeks ago she
became much worse from stomach
troubles and continued failing until
death came to her relief. She leaves
four daughters and three sons, as fol
lows: Mrs. M. II. Shoemakerof Union,
Mrs. John Gerking of Fairplay, Mo.,
Mrs. M. W. Smith of Nebraska City,
Mrs. Bion Merchant and John, Chester
and George, of Elgin.
The relatives arrived here with the
remains last night, and they were tak
en to the home of her daughter, Mrs.
Shoemaker. The funeral will occur
Saturday.
Greenwood.
Special correspondence of the Journal.
The Town Goes Wet.
Sketch of the first engagement, by
our special war artist in the field.
PATTSMOUTH IS HEADQUARTERS.
Western Turners So Deslflnate for Another
Year.
At the district convention of the
German Turners, held here last week,
Plattsmouth was again made the head
quarters for the Missouri Valley Dis
trict for another year. This renews
the power of the local society to name
the officers for the entire district.
The business session showed the af
fairs of societies Included in this dis
trict to be in the best of shape. There
is a neat sum of money in the treas
ury, and part of this will be used dur
ing the year in instituting new socie
ties of the order.
The delegates present at the two
days' session were: Dr. Fred Burger,
George Braun and John Heeler of
Kansas City, Adam Heibel and John
Bode of St. Joe, Philip Andres, John
Voss, John Krage and William Schulz
of Omaha, Stephan Kostlan, H. Jess
and C. Peterson of Fremont, and Otto
Wurl and John Sattlerof Plattsmouth.
Mr. Andres was made chairman of the
business.meetings, and Louis Ottnat,
the division secretary, acted as secre
tary. The visitors departed Monday, de
claring that they had enjoyed a most
pleasant visit to this city, and all ex
pressed a hope that it would be their
let to come again next year.
I
Meau'whlle It :wm"'beItraTisTr.ted "Into J '
Spanish, and be printed both in En?-
lish and Spanish. The new tariff will
MOST POPULAR OF ALL.
Mn Jonhin Slurphy and Unify Weld
uian So t'rououuerri at Hand Fair.
Miss Josephine Murphy is the most
popular 3'oung woman in Plattsmouth,
and Henry Weidmann the most popu
lar young man in the city. Such is
the verdict handed down by a perfect
shower of votes cast for the two at
the fair of the B. & M. band held at
Waterman hall last week.
The voting for the diamond ring to
be awarded to the popular young lady
and the gold headed cane for the most
popular young man was one of the
chief features of a very successful
fair. There were more than a dozen
contestants in all, and each receiving
a good vote made the business a profit
able one for the band lioys. Although
at first interest in the voting apiared
to lag, it was simply because those in
terested were holding back their votes
to the last, and especially for the hair
hour's secret balloting which ran the
aggregate of the votes up to an aston
ishing figure, the balloting being much
heavier in proportion than that in the
contests of the Omaha Auditorium
fair. Following is the total of the
vote cast for each contestant:
ladies' votk.
Josephine Murphy !9S
Antonia Kes9ler... .":
Alice Peterson V2'2
Mamie Koehnke 50
Blanche Sullivan 26
Addie Smith 21
Florence White 1!
Lillian Shryock K
GENTLEMEN'S VOTE.
II. E. Weidmann 434
Artie Helps 224
E. W. Cook 79
J. I. Unruh 3t;
John Fassbender 23
F. J. Mortran 21
Dan Smith ic,
T. H. Pollock 14
Byron Clark. 2
II. X. Dovtjv. I
Miss Karvonek and Wm. Dougherty
were awarded the prizes given the
best lady and gentlemen waltzers.after
a close and animated contest.
The fair was most gratifying in its
results in every way, netting, as it did,
over $3."i0 to the band ltoys, after the
paying of all expenses. That neat sum
will fully equip our fine musicians in
bright new uniforms, the color of
which they have decided shall be a
rich blue black. The boys and young
ladies and women who so ably un
tiringly assisted them through it all,
deserve the fullest measure of success
for their efforts. It was a most de
lightful entertainment in every re
spect, so that all who attended felt
amply repaid.
PLATTSMOUTH POPULATION.
Special Enumeration Endicating
Over 6,000 Inhabitants.
Although the speciai census enume
rators appointed last week by Mayor
Parmole have not as yet finished their
work, they have ascertained for a
surety that there are many more than
."j.OOO inhabitants in this city. Last
night the total of names secured by
the three enumerators was 5,041, with
a considerable portion of the city still
to cover, and every indication pointing
to something over 0 000.
The enumerators say that the third
ward is the only one in w hich there is
an appreciable falling off in anticipat
ed results.
Monday being Arbor Pay there w ill
be no session of the local schools on
that date.
The May Smart Set.
The leading feature of the Smart Set
for May is a novelette entitled "The
Wage of Character," by Julien Gor
don (Mrs. Van Renselaer Cruger).
This is the most ambitious story that
Mrs. Cruger has published in some
years, and it is perhaps the strongest
and most brilliant she has ever writ
ten. She has dared to write of New
York and Washington society, in
which she has so long been an admira
ble and commanding figure, and it is
hardly to be supposed that she could
locate a story of such length in her
immediate environment, wielding the
incisive and epigrammatic pen she
does,withoutcreatinga lively flutter in
the social dovecote. Her story tells of
the strange courtship and sudden mar-'
riage of Hazard Thome, a brilliant
Harvard graduate, to the sister of
his schoolmate an.d Intimate friend,
Hamilton Darrell, a multi-millionaire.
Their life in New York.and afterward
in Washington, where Thorner goes
as a member of congress.and where he
becomes sensationally involved with
two women socially conspicuous, is an
Intensely realistic and fascinating
study. Mrs. Cruger is one of the few
women in literature who write alwaj'S
to the point, and she dessects charac
ter with the pitiless skill of the vlvi
sectionist. In "The Wage of charac
ter" the reading public doubtless has
a new literary sensation.
; Gore K. Kennun In Kttnla.
ST. PETERSBURG, July S. George
we
Morgan 'tntfcfestsT"
and the Vanderbilt lines will
the coal produced in the b