IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) "( [ I.I 11.25 ;■ s Hiotographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. I45«0 (716)872-4S03 •^ v s> 4^ CIHM/ICMH Microfiche Series. CIHIVl/iCMH Collection de microfiches. Canadian Institute for Historical Microreproductions / Institut Canadian de microreproductions historiques Technical and Bibliographic Notes/Notes tachniquos at bibiiographiquas Tha Instituta has attamptad to obtain tha bast original copy avaiiabia for filming. Faaturas of this copy which may btf bibliographically uniqua, which may altar any of tha imagas in tha raproduction, or which may significantly changa tha usual mathod of filming, ara chackad balow. D a n D D D Colourad covars/ Couvartura da coulaur » Covars damagad/ Couvartura andommagte Covars rastorad and/or laminatad/ Couvartura rastaur6a at/ou pallicul6a Covar title missing/ La titre de couverture manque Coloured maps/ Cartes giographiques en couleur Coloured ink (i.e. other than blue or black)/ Encra da couleur (i.e. autre que bleue ou noire) Coloured plates and/or illustrations/ Planches et/ou illustrations en couleur Bound with other material/ Reiii avac d'autres documents Tight binding may cause shadows or distortion along interior margin/ La re liure serrie peut causer de I'ombre ou de la distortion ie long de la marge intirieure Blank leaves added during restoration may appear within tha text. Whenever possible, these have been omitted from filming/ II se peut que certainas pages blanches ajout6es lors d'une restauration apparaissent dans la texte, mais, lorsque cela 6tait possible, ces pages n'ont pas 6t6 film6es. Additional comments:/ Commentaires supplimentaires: L'institut a microfiimi ie meilleur exemplaira qu'il lui a At6 possible de se procurer. Les details de cet exemplaira qui sont peut-Atre uniques du point de vue bibliographique, qui peuvent modifier une image reproduite. ou qui peuvent exiger une modification dans la mAthode normale de f ilmaga sont indiqute ci-dessous. I I Coloured pages/ [^ D This item is filmed at the reduction ratio checked below/ Ce document est filmA au taux de reduction indiquA ci-dessous. Pages de couleur Pages damaged/ Pages endommagtes Pages restored and/oi Pages restaur^as et/ou pellicul6es Pages discoloured, stained or foxe* Pages dicoior^es, tachaties ou piqu6es I — I Pages damaged/ I I Pages restored and/or laminated/ rri Pages discoloured, stained or foxed/ □ Pages detached/ Pages d4tach6es Showthrough/ Transparence I I Quality of print varies/ Quality in^gala de I'impression Includes supplementary material/ Comprend du material suppi^mantaira Only edition available/ Seule Edition disponible Pages wholly or partially obscured by errata slips, tissues, etc., have been refllmed to ensure the best possible image/ Les pages totalement ou partieliement obscurcies par un feuillet d'errata, une pelure, etc., ont M filmies A nouveau de fapon A obtanir la meilleure image possible. 10X 14X 18X 22X 26X 30X y 12X 16X 20X 24X 28X 32X laire B details iuas du It modifiar :igar una a filmaga Tha copy filmad hara hat baan raproducad thanka to tha ganarotity of: National Library of Canada Tha imagaa appaaring hara ara tha bast quality posslbia consldaring tha condition and laglbility of tha original copy and in icaaping with tha filming contract spacifications. L'axamplaira film* fut raproduit grAca A la g^nArositi da: Bibliothdqua nationala du Canada Las imagas suivantas ont 6t6 raproduitas avac la plus grand soin, compta tanu da la condition at da la nattat6 da I'axampiaira fiimA, at an conformity avac las conditions du contrat da filmaga. 1/ |u6es Original copias in printad papar covars ara filmad baginning with tha front covar and andiiig on tha last paga with a printad or lllustratad impras- sion, or iha bacic covar whan approprlata. All othar original copias ara filmad baginning on tha first paga with a printad or lllustratad Impras- sion, and anding on tha last paga with a printad or lllustratad imprassion. Las axamplairas originaux dont la couvartura an papiar ast imprlmte sont fiimfo an commandant par la pramiar plat at en tarminant soit par la darnlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'imprassion ou d'iliustration, soit par la sacond plat, salon la cas. Tous las autras axamplairas originaux sont filmte an commandant par la pramlAra paga qui comporta una amprainta d'imprassion ou d'iliustration at an tarminant par la darnlAra paga qui comporta una talla amprainta. Tha last racordad frama on aach microficha shall contain tha symbol — ^> (moaning "CON- TINUED"), or tha symbol V (moaning "END"), whichavar appiias. Un das symbolas suivants apparattra sur la darnlAra imaga da chaqua microfiche, salon la cas: la symbols — ► signifia "A SUiVRE". la symbols V signifia "FIN". Bira Maps, platas, charts, ate, may ba filmad at diffarant reduction ratios. Thosa too larga to ba entirely included in one exposure &iit filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Lea cartas, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre fiimte A des taux da reduction diff Grants. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seui clichA, il ^st filmA d partir de Tangle supArieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant la nombra d'images nAcessaira. Las diagrammas suivants illustrent la mAthode. by errata nad to lent une peiure, fapon d 12 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 ff.ll^M <^^^^rf' mim FULL DETAILS OP THM ..■f Of the 12th of Kaich, IBST, AT THE DESJAPIN CMAL, fin the line of tke Great Wsisf em fiailwa^. /■■-i.- •♦» HAMILTON : WILMAII A. SHEPARD & CO., PUBLISHERS. ^ ^■■e' Frtnttd Ct th« *^mkUn t!f htniDf rareit,*' bj Joho W. E»rrii * Oo. •,.i r- ■•^v. .1- C ^1?^f :;i'!pi!:ii'l. ^ "HM 11 ¥ ilJi :»> ii' y^ M l| &f\ : •'4,!'?!!' /'''''V mi l^i'"?.;.!!;.'.''' .; a :il'' 1.1. ■ -t ■ . nUj •*J ffii| to tr.- Ba( I |UI| 'H Gs; Is' i:.i t eflorfv.7 -lucS dolil":^ ^cf .f"?rt trso •,^nr.unx;T.MajsMo nortUIoo ia}'/*';*! ©lU THE PEAT RAILWAY CATASTJIOM OIF* TXZS laTZI SiCAtXlOXX. 1857, r'l: OK THi! DE8JARDIN CANAL BUIDGE; ^tt^HucON THK LINK OF THE ORBAT WE8TEIIN RAILWAY«.?:U ,9Xiil [The object of the Publishers of this pamphlet is txro-fold,— flrst,'; to place on record, in a concise form, a narrative of one of tiic most fearful casualties 'of modern times, collated from reliable sources; and, secondly, to pay some slight tribute to the memory of those beloved fellow-cit'zens who perished in that fearful catastrophe, and now filuiti- ber in the silent tomb.] •^'jir'ijA.Ot Hr Vl.lTf^sT'-'/Tjfi iP ;N5r»* ft" ieij t*ri4 }fi«l b\».p' ..rit:ti pWr- , Thb Twslfth or Mabch will long be remembered in Canada as a doyoi sad bereayements and heart-rending reminiscences. , 'r>r ■}-:> On the afternoon of that day (1857) there left^Toronto iho usual pas- seni^er train for Hamilton. As near as can be ascertained, there iirqredboup one hundred persons on the train. The usual calls were inadc at tlio T^jar, stations, and the train arrived at the JDesjardin Junction at its appointecl time, having taken on about the same number as had beeii set down, so that the train was much about as we have stated it. XVhen approaching tbo Junction, the customary signals were given, and the train was brought on^, from the Toronto Branch (as the Hamilton and Toronto Railroad is called}, into thei main line of the Great Western Road. But before we proceed fur-, ther, it may be well to explain the condition of things at this point-.-a point which lias now acquired a world-wide fame for death and disaster. Within forty yards of the junction of the two roads, tbo GrpatWestcrp* crosses the Desjardin Canal, which is a short navigation: conuscting the town of Dundas with Burlington Bay, at the head of Lake Gntario. Prior to the construction of the Great Western Railroad, its course was circuitous, wind»if" ing round the Heights at the bottom of a deep ravine. An attempt was made by the engineers of the Company to construct a bridge at the point where the line crosses the old canal channel ; but after the expenditure of' a large sum of money, it was deemed to be impracticable, as no good foundation could be got, audit was consequently abandoned as beiiig a '*bottoml^s pit," by which name it is yet known. An arrangement ^as then effected with the Canal Company (which was originally started into existence by an entorprizing French gentleman who resided at Dundas, named Peter Desjardin) by Which the Canal was carried directly through the Heights, and w the so-oftlled « bottomless pit" was filled up. It was at this embankment that the fearful collinon of last January occurred, by which four persons lost their lives, and numbers of others escaped as by a miracle.. Between the Heights and the Buy, the Canal is crossed by a swing-bridge of sixty feet upaia, the abutments being of solid masonrjf.aiid rising fi>rtv f4e!t l|i,boi(e^l|i^ ^ letel of the water, which is there twelve feet deep. At the a!6tance of forty yards on the north-east side of the bridge (from which direotton this ill-fated train waa prooee<Mng) there is a switch, b^ ipeaiis of whipb tb^ saila on th^. Toronto branch are united with '^ho^eon the main track of tiie GFrealt Western line, there being, only one ti^ok ovsr the Ittidge; and honoeHtheMiecessity of this switch. When the train passed this point, there were two men in attendanoe at the switch, the one having just come on dut;^ ""j^i^^^P <^head of his given time, to enable the other to proceed to the city op that train, as, was his oustom. They both agree that nothing appeared; t^ be wroi^g a»,i;h^ . locomotive passed over the switch ; one of them j vamped pn the platforo^ of. . the last car, and held on for a moment by the iron rods ; the brakes had bj^en loosened, and onwards went the train. We have said that the train had passed the switch apparently all right ; In a moment .or two, the locomotive eaters on the bridge ; one sharp, shrill whistle gives the only warning to the passengers that between them apd eternity there is left scarcely sufficient tii^e to say, " May the Lord be merciful I" Thq Oj^ord sinks through the floor , of the bridge, and goes down at a fearful plunge through the ice, and the waters hide it from view, together ^th that brave driver Bubnfield, who perished at his post, in the exeeution of his duty. Next cpmeathe tender, an^ then the baggage car, in which there \fejre two or three personit. Aqd then the first passenger car, with its fifty pre- ciotis soiils, comes dQwn the rails and takes the fatal leap, Mther ttirnthg a' complete somersault or careening over upside down. It lies across the b^d of" the canal, the ice being broken through, and the car is about half-filled with [ waier. fiat there is yet another car-load of mortal beings poised for a moment ^ on the top of the wall, and then it, too, plunges into that fearful abyds leaving the hind trucks on the rails above — a poor remnant of a whole train, which b^t a moment before was as perfect as skill could make it, aad bore homeward many a manly heart, and fondly-beloved father, mother, husband, wife, broth- er, sister and child. A few escaped, and others perished in the attempt ; but^ not less than fifty-soyen or sixty lives werie, ''at one fell swoop," cut off" in the > twinkling of an eye, as it were, aad souls were lauded ou the shore? of eterni^- ty which had no time to reflect of its grandeur or its despair. ' As might be expected, the news of the tragedy ran from mouth to mouth i with the speed of evil'tidings, and every possible means were employed to> re^ue the wounded, the dying, and the deadi Throughout the whole of that, night and during the succeeding days and nights, there was an army of men, engaged in breaking up the submerged cars and taking out those who had been- imprisoned. We shall proceed presently, to detail the results of these labors, mor^ minutely, as also the hair-breadth 'scapes of those whp; st^ li^e^ to teUi thelMd story of tbtiir experience. In the mean time, we mnst speak of tBe immr ate effects of the oatastropbe. It was one of those cold evenings whicli sometimes sacceeds a clear sunny day in March, and the labonrs of those brare fellows who bad chosen the taslc of wreckers were cruelly heightened by the intensity of the frost, for many of them were saturated with water at the flreez- ^ng p(^t. Thousands of the citizens of Hamilton— men, women, and children — hurried to the scene of the disaster;— the city was wrapped in mourning, M Q^ by one some valued resident or well-khown friend was borne to the Gharnel house. The ncwspapisr and telegraph offices were besieged with anxions en- qiiircls after ah.seiit friends ; and as the news spread to Toronto and distant points, the intensity of feeling was even more and more heightened by the interchange of communications which left no doubt as to the fate of others, not yet recovered from the wreck. This continued thronghout the whole night (the telegraph offices being kept open) and during the next day. — The bitter lamentations of those who came to search fur lost friends among the dead at the railroad depot was such as can never be forgotten by those who witnessed th<t grief of a mother as she picked out au only son perhaps from among the dead ; a husband who recognised in the mangled and stiffened corpse before him, the partner of his life ; a wife who shrieked with horror and fell prostrate over the husband she adored. Ah ! it was afearful sight, to behold a woman with her infant clasped in the arms of death; sisters lying side by side; whole families jgrouped together in affrighed attitudes ; here an unclaimed child or woman, there a stranger in a strange land. .. ^ > 'iOiQ^^ai Neither wealth, nor power, nor skill, nor learning, nor courage, nor wortJi, nor experience could help or save at that dread moment I In that assemblage were men who had run the gauntlet with Death by flood and field; had passed through many trials, and had experienced some successes ; men who had grown rich in worldly goods, amid the strife of life and in opposition to many dis- couragements ; hod had cause to mistrust a stout heart, and yet had outlived trying difficulties. But now they mingle once more with that dust from whence all sprung, and to which all must return, for rso V *r....y, Death hurls the moxMrch from his throne^ dc^.^^«- S^ith claims all living &r his own! Turn we now to a closer examination of the results Of this sad calamfiy. It itfay b(3 bi^t'tet imagined than described, how tremendous was the frenzy of the pppulace as the news ran through the streets, and the names of beloved friends and relatives were repeated in the lists of victims. -^4 . ; i ) :. The nuini}er of nai'rbw escapes is very remarkable, and worthy of ia pass- ing reference. One gentleman paid a cabman handsomely to gallop to the depot in Toronto, but arrived just too late ; another was on the cars^ but got off for some trifling purpose at the suggestion of a friend, and was left; another was detained by an invitation to dine with a Cabinet Minister ; another |K(;9Q|i^3tinated, |ie knows not why, till it was too late, though he desired to take that train; others, again, stayed over to see Miss Nickinson per- form at tbfe :£b^atre f toother mussed the cars by half a miuiale at Pert Credit ; 8« I -^.< another, the i^Aine at TVatardown ; another got off and was left behind At Welllogtou Square. A lady who wi\» killed was taken on in the mornlDg on her way down, after the train had started. Such are the trifling oircumstances by which life's tenor is held, or ior ever snapped asunder. ^ ^^ LIST OF THE DEAD. ~i: 'The following is a correct Ilat of the dead, iaken from the OorqatKi Book :— rn*':.'' ,. ' h^inti'i-^ ^ftr^i'r, 'uy •"K'i'-f'xiP 'srti>o otsoa '*rf^ f*l ^v«iT.L;*J Ay- . 1.— Donald Stuart, Mercbnut. Hamilton. bfivfitf '^muf* 'jajyti ,.. , 2.— A. Grant, Goat Is'and, Niagara Falls, New York. 3.— John Russell, Rulhvay Couuactor, Brantford, of th9 flrm q( Melliih, Morrell •& Rus-scU. ' '^"^ i. ......*,..,.,., v.,.. y.: 4.— Mrn. Uus^ol, wife of the above. *' ^iin: ii-'^i\'.,Mil '<i\i .'u. ^ .«'. 6. — Timothy Doyle, of Dumbarton. i,w »i.oiim'iasjaim<y)'\o e>-^{i6A!iv)ml 7.— Patrick Doyle, brother of No. 5. ^ . ^^ j [ , ^ 8.— Timothy Doyle, son of No. 5, aged 3 yearc *" ^'T*^??*'"'* ^^*) *^V*^ ft,-^Joseph Barr, Merchant, Niagara. i^o ? f^jimuwHJBl tyWi^ «rf'f IQ.— James Gannon, Chicago. -tKj'.f> hcwi^i.-n »dJ in hnub <jai II.— Samuel Ziramermaa. Niagara Falls. . 12.-^Thomas Benson. Secretary and Treasurer of the Port Hope, Lindsay arid Beaver ton Rail'vay, Port Hope. I 13.- John Sharp, Bookseller at the Hamilton Depot of the G. W. R. <*^' ?i^ EC 'ii r„14.— H'jv. Alfred Booker, Pastor of the Park Street Baptist Church, Horn- on. ^aiO'ff a 15.— Ernstus W. Green, (unmarried,) Hamilton. ; r: K;.— John C. Henderson, brotbur-in-law of C. J. Brydges, Esq., Managing Director of tbe Great Western Railway. 17.— Mahaly Clare, daughter of John K. Glar?, merchant, ^a^^)ltoo. aged 2 years. , ^ , '. '-^ji"J8— Daniel Seoord, Brantford. ' ' " -I'^AbiUiy') nm^yL^'U:n £; ,. 1!).— 20. — Mrs. Beck and infant child, Hamilton, t - r ' - ' .*: .- n.rtr -.t>w 21. — Eiwin DuQiuld. late mate of tlie Europa steamer, Hamilton. ^^\j • 22. — Joseph Major, Tsvo Ri vers, Michigan. ... -^' - 23.-^Cai3t:ain James Sutherland, late of steamer Magnet, Hamilton;'* ■ '^'^ hr 24<'<'Adam Ferric, Jr. Hamilton, eldest son of the late Colin G. Ferrie, 25.— Geo. Darragh. Nelson. ... -■'.■■■■.■' w^^y^pi^i^ 26.— James Ross, Gas Inspector, Toronto. 'v: 27. — Jacob C. Snyder, miller, St. Jacobs. 28.— John Wilford, miller, (lately from England,) stopping at Dowling'a Hotel, Bay Street, Hamilton. ;-,: ) i 29.— iVlcxander BurnQeld, engi neer of the ill-fated trafn, Hamilton, leavee it wife and small faniily. Ivj 30.— Mr. Barton, sen., of Stratford, a very aged and respectable man. "'f 31.- -Robert Crawford, farmer, Saltfleet. ^ ^^32.-- Wi^.Sj^urdy, Loudon,, in employ of Robert Walker, mei^hont tailor. '.■•■-"' 7" "';•;■',",'";■,■;; •.,-•,- ' 3?r— Hugh McSIbjf, merchant, St. Catharines. io; 34.— Rev. Dr. Heise, German Minister, (Church of England,) Hamilton. ' : < , 3 j.T- Joseph Harkness, Toronto, late Band master of the Rifles ; more re- ce,|itly Quartermaster in the same corps. 36.— Charles Brown, merchant. Gait. 37.— Mr. Kendall, [ticket agent for ''Toronto Omnibus line,"] formerly printer of Rochestori ^ . n ,.;i@.^Dian^ McFiggon, servant of Mr. Irving, Solicitor^ G. W. B. . ■tripl wbicl Bowj His gpinl .a" n 'i t behind at tnorniog on roumatancea »i e Oorontr'ii of Melliih, •'uiuid.iivnal •■' .*''/ Um ■•i-^si-i mil ►'•/) 'jsii >e, Lindsay w.n. uroh, Ham- Managing ilton, aged • {>:- !.. ,4 ton. 0. Ferrie, bowling's m, leaves man. )[iefchant nilton. morere- bnnerly V '89. — Mm Stevenson, wife of P. S. Stevenson, Esq., oommission merchant, Hamilton, daugliter of Sberitt' Thomas. n;»;y'jn/j fv.i ccri-.i! 'ini 40— Ati old man. name unknown, drab overcoat, bine vert, red comforter, striped woollen mittenH. In hbpocket u bag of stiver, uIho rome paper?*, among which was a note drawn by J. Maxwell in favor of Thomos Brown, and dated Bowmanvillc. 41.— John Morley, Tigroid, one of the best plough malcers in Clanada.— His body was claimed by his fricndt^. 42. — A young girl, named Ellen Devine^ from below Port NVUon ; was gpingon a visit to her brptbor near Hamiltop.. '43. — Mary Devine, sister of the above. ' ' . ' Ka,ftf 15^,^44.— G. S. Sloan, merchant, CaLsterville. K^,. 45. — David Curti.s. Jr^, of Ingersoll, (whoa^ fi^ther was seriously injured). ^^'46.— Darius Witter, of Markhain. ..;..;■.. . '.; " 47.— J. Brudfield, Clifton, farmer & flour merchant, retariiinjaj with hiii wife from a visit to Dr. Cadwell, the Toronto occulist, who identifled them. 48.— Mrs. Bradfleld, wife of the above. The bodies were taken away by relatives. _,^ .■ ., xr i^.^'^'J^^*-' wsbnojojr.xixir. .•:.j*i«iT.'»M;if. ir 49.— James Forbes, of Nelson. .. „, ^^,^^^n 60.— Colin Campbell, ofCampblcvillo. ' m.'. ,^,;. L, 61. — George Ellard, of Albion, Massachusietfs. ' 62.— G. McDennee, (rfuppoijed) a young man aged 25. bible with nnme In, but no residence. Papers and letters dated ShaunouviUe. A miniature of male and female, and portmonnaic, with some money, were also found. 63.— Hugh McEvoy, of Walpole. ■' n ,. 54.— llalph Wade, Esq., of Cobourg. Mr. Wade was extensively en- gagieid in the breeding and importing of improved stock, and was well known to the leading agriculturists of the Province,. 65. — Mary Jane Davis, of Toronto. ^ ,', ;,.;.. . ,}„, ., .,' -j^h,) 'Hl3 66.-r-George Knight, of Windsor, the fireman of the locJombtivo, r !:>i^« 5 '!> .''M'i\ ^-U •SI' \(i 'f, 57-58. — Mrs. Howden :^nd infant child, of Weston^ .^jy, 69. — Sir. Farr, contractor, Hamilton. :?- LIST OF THE INJURED. ».< , Mr. Thomas C. Street, of Niagara Falls, the eminent capitalist, and formerly M. P. for the county of Welland, has his collar-bone fractured, and also some injury in his right arm. At last accounts he was doing well. Mr. Street could give no account of the accident; he knew nothing till he was taken from the ruins. Dr. Macklem, of Chippawa, escaped with some cuts and a bruise in the abdomen. Drs. Bethune and Frazer were both in attendance on this gentleman. He is slowly recovering. 'uj "' ' Mr. Woods, of Woodstock, had his arm broken. Capt. A. McBride, of Port Burwell, escaped with some ii^juries on the head. > .jL ivAc: -^ .i"iL V> iniwtw ' ■ Mr. Barton, jr., of Stratford, is much injured about the head. H. M. Yerington, of, Port Stanley, received a contusion OA the head; not seriously injured. V > , '• t r John R. Clare, merohaht, b'f Hamilton, received some severe cuts about the head, but not dangerously injured. ' Mr. R. L. Hamlin, of Newcastle, C. W., not much hurt. He was in the last car. He says he felt the first shaking of the train, ^nd then a shock, which must have been at the time when the engine went through the bridge. He saw the car losing its horizontal position, and was pitehed head-foremost to the bottom. He was the first rescued. He describes the agony of the ■oene as intense. His clothes were completely covered with blood, n ^auA .•5 fm^. if' si .'I -ii 1 Ai^ .<<•• John Brennan had a sli^t wound on the faoe and bniisQ oh thli chest. Michael Brennan had an extensive wound on the sealpahdii^uriesabditt the ohest. . .;, i/i Elizabeth Brennan had only a slight bruise on the head: ' ■ V n •; f/ir'^t 1>$^- Oeorge Havill, bar-keeper at the City Bowling Saloon, bruised abouttlre chest and hips. W.U.Marshall, of Woodstock, was severely though not daneerously wounded. He was one of the first rescued, and was immediately r^move^to the residence of his brother-in-law, Mr. J. W. Frsimpton, Queen l^treet. Edward McFeely, passenger from Toronto to Buffiilo, 'was slightiy in- jured. C. Foster, passenger from Toronto to Susjienslpn Bridge slightly iigured. John Henderson, passenger from Toronto to Ne'w York, slightly iigured. ^', , . Jas. Barnes, passenger from Waterdotvn to Hatuilton, Collar-bone broken. Ferdinand Baigner, passenger from Toronto to Buffalo, slightly injured. \'~^\im&.mM^ >v;-:,/ s^jtiod THE ESCAPED. 7/ ,bl xmrui .^xM— .ai^ - Mr. Muir, Traffic Superintendent Great Western Railroad, had a mo^t miraculous escape. He was on the last scat of the last car reading, when he was startled by the unusual motion of the train. Starting up and rushing to the door, he perceived what was the matter, andjumpedoff at the very moment the cat \,as being precipitated in the yawning gulph beneath. In- deed the platform ot the car was on a level with the severed timber of the bridge. With a powerful effort Mr. Muir leaped to a place of safety. Richard F. Jessup, travelling Auditor of the Great Western Railway Company, was in the last car when the accident odCurred. After passing the switch he felT an unusual motion which induced him to look out. lite had barely time to leap from the platform to a place of safety, When tho traiia took the fatal plunge. Two railway men, Mr. Reed, of Suspension Bridge, formerly of the Northern Railroad, and Mr. Hill, of Toronto, and Mr. Barrett, Conductor of the train, were standing on the platform of the front ctki, and jumped off with- out injury. ITI Mr. Richardson, one of the Conductors of the Railway, but not then on duty, was asleep in the baggage car when the accident took place, and was conscious of nothing until he found himself lying on the ice almost unhurt. Mr. M'Cuiiough, printer of the Guardian office, escaped with slight cuts on the head. Owen Doyle, a resident of Dunbarton, Pickering, escaped from the finit car through the window. Two children of his brother Timothy Doyle, one a girl of eight ydats. also got out of the car in what appears a miraculous manner. - An Irishwoman who had two fingers broken, name unknown, was able to w«lk off immediately after the accident. Statement of Mr, John K. Clare. ..ha&d Mr. Clare, merchant of Hamilton, who was in the first passenger car, ' inhAe the following statement to the Reporter of the Speciatdr ': — He says it is impossible the train can have been off the track, for it went smoothly until just at the bridge, when he felt a jerk and heard a whistle. — Hardly an instant afterwards a second jerk was felt, which was wh^ti ,the ear was going over the precipice. The car turned upside down, as it fell, but he ' cannot saypositively whether it turned pVer sideways, or m^de a (somersattit in the direction of its length. He thinks the latter to have been the case. At the bottom, he was for i^ome time in a bent and crouching position, almost sit- - ting, on the inside of the roof of the car— the stove was hissing close behiitH him, and keej^ng him down. He felt the water c<mie in and rise gradaally to abiat Bucce^ car tc aM.Pl spptil foandl lei^vel ofJic .up-. e oft th« chest, i usuries ttbiHit t\- •*>J- tised about <Ui« M dftnc^ously ely r^teovedto « iSkreet. w sli^ay iM. Kfatly itrfured. ghtly injured, •bone broken. fhUy mured. ; f »■ ;*» bad a most eading, when p and rushing at the very beneath. lu- mber of the 'ety. ern Railway !r passing the 3Ut. He had en tho trafii lerly of the Conductor of iped off with- not then on ce, and was nost unhurt. ^ slight cuto >m the firgt Jight ydars. i» was able »engor car, fer ftrWent I. whittle.—- betf the car fell, but he (somersatiit 5 case. At almost sit- ose behi^ Bdually to abiat Iflairip, whoi with an eObrt. he thre^r off the weight of the stove, and succeeded with some difficulty in making his way from about the centre of the . car to the window at the end. It was brokeo, and Mr. Clare thinks that if ftj^y one got throngh it, it must have been before he did. He staid near the sp6t for some time, although much injured thinkinghislitllrgirl might be soon fotod- But at length he was persuaded by his friends, though reluctantly, to lei^ve the spot. The Buffalo j&:^reM contains the following repoi^t Qf the narrow escapet: d'Sllessrs. Smith, Reed and Yerrington :— i,.,f. - k?'? ..ni^sT?. , tti-- Vv ,^ f f^^jor: -»i- rrt in; I Statement of Mr. John J. Smith. ' ^•' -'.or js- r> JOn I>ih Saturday morning, called on Mr. John J. Smith, of Livonia, Wayne Co.. Miobie»n, who is at the Anglo American ; found him able to sit up though very lame, his right ankle bruised and his chest ; with a cut on his head. — At the time of the accident he was sitting in the front part of the hind car, the third seat from the door opposite the stove, that being on the right side fronting this way. Just a second before going down, heard a whistle and a noise in front of the train. The car felt as if it was off the track by the jolt- ing, and seeing passengers jumping hastily up, followed suit, going to the rear of tljie car, when feeling it going from under him, he clasped one of the hooks, and thinks he thereby saved his life. On reaching the bottom, how he does not know, he found himself in water up to his neck, and was for a time under water, having swallowed a large quantity. He was enabled by mov- ing his head partly to ene side to keep his month above water and breathe, being unable to move, on account of bodies on his feet. He ffelt a man's head nea? him when in the water, who appeared to be deald. He describes the cries and groans as heart-rending in the extreme. On being carried to the hotel, hfe wAft 80 chilled from b^ihg in the icy water that it was a long time before he eould be made comfortable. Statement of Mr. W. W. Reed. -^ -^^e^f hosum^H Mr. Reed, who is a relative of C. M. Reed j of Erie, was sitting in the' fourth seat from the door of the last car. Fonr persons sitting as follows :-«> - Mr* Yerrington, on the fiiist seat, left side , Mr. Zimmerman next. Mr. Farr • third, Mr. Reed occupying the fourth. Thinks they were going six or eight miles an hour, and had been going at that slow rate for half a mile or more. Mr. R. was reading, a newspaper at the time : heard one whistle for down breaks, when he felt a thumping of the car and knew it was off the track, but' from' the rate they were going knew they could not go far, and sat still brac- ing himself in his seat As he felt the car plunge over he braced back, and the seats which were all torn from their fastenings came against him, and the seat back, forming a kidd of cradle as he expresses it, all going to the bottom t^tgetherw The last be saw of Mr. Zimmerman and Mr. Farr they were hurry- ing to the rear to get out, and he thinks must have beeu thrown the whole ' length of the car. It is probable if they had kept their seats as Mr. R. and' Yerrington did, they would still be alive. While under the rnbbisb, after; getting his breath, began to feel his limbs, and found that he could move them all only in a very contracted manner, and was congratulating himself that he; was well out of it ; as ho heard persons walking over him, called to them, but found, after repeated efforts that he could not make them bear. The most total darkness prevailed ; he could not see even the first ray of light ; when he felt hot steam comiug against his head, and hearing a woman crying bo- ' low him that she was burning to death, for a few moments he says he ex- perienced the most awful feelings, and gave himself up for lost, thinking the < car would get on fire from the stove an I burn him to death. The horror of ' that'few moments can scarcely be imagined. Fortunately, help came within' about fiAeen minates, and he comes out nearly all right, receiving only oooi I •I '.) \ ii or two slight onts, and ezoepting a aoreness would feel pertBOtlj weU. H« retaras home to-day,'.'-'- aicm rfri^ '-•n y^viyni-.* m % M*rtHiii.h *»<»;>* a•.'^^ i)9bs9S!4»»A .^^ ';^: ,^ StdUmentof Ur. H. M. TernngUm'a. 7;]; ;^,'' ! 1 '' . 'I Mr. Yerrington, who is from Port Stanley, wa8 repbrteS as 'severely '^ wounded, but on visiting him this morning, we found him ready to go out, the report having originated from his clothes being perfectly saturated with blood when taken out. Mr. Y. was sitting at the front end of the last car with his feet on the stove, next in front of Mr. Zfimmerman. Thinks thfey had been running some way— half a mile or more — at about ten miles an 'hour ; did not hear any whistle, which he thinks may be accounted for by the coise ; felt the jolting of the cars as if it was off the track, for sixty feet, or a little more than the length of the car. Not remembering the bridge, did not give any concern to the noise, thinking at the worst they could not go far at thak rate, before they would hold up. He had never been in a collision, but had thought if he should ever be he would keep his seat ; the determintipn saved his life probably. The glass ic the cars broke, and he thinks some of the seats gave way be- fore the car went over. Thinks that Messrs. Zmmerman and Farr were thrown down first, and he was thrown over the stove on them, being in the water and when taken out was a little out of his head, but came out all right ' after s?ettlng warm, with the exception of a cut under the left ear, and a scalp - wound ott the back of his head. • '. ^ ' „■ , . , nr nr i ifSfft/r-. i'fij'WiCf .TJa*?/ 'I9f)0rj Statement of Mr. Marahall. - ; W. R. Marshall, of Woodstock, was one of the few fortunate persons who were not killed by the late fearful accidei^. From his statement which ivp- pears in the Spectator, we make the following extracts : — ''There were no incidents of a striking nature ppitihe trip from Toronto to, the junction with the main line near Hamilton. When within sight of the Hamilton station, Mr. Beatty asked m»: *'what time it was ?" I looked at my watch and told him it was a ''quarter to t." About this time the train began to go slower. Nearly half a minute afterw.. ^'^s I perceived quite a consterna- tion in the cars, passengers running to and fro, ^oparently much excited. Att the same time, I felt a strange sensation as if ca>i?.ediiby something impeding the motion of tlie train. It was not a shock, but at the same time every ono seemed to think thac something was wrong. As I was not a\vare of the dan- gerous character of the place we were approaching, I retained my seat, and adrised others to do the same. A slight pause ensued, myself and those sitting '■ with me, remaining still, but anxiously waiting the result, when with one Jerk - we were precipitated into the yawning abyss below. While descending I re-; tained perfect consciousness, and felt we were going down aome awful preci-*! pice: not a voice was heard in the descent. On reaching the bottom there- wus one general crash, after which I found myself in total darkness, hemmed in on every side ; and crushed almost to suffocation by human bodies and bro- ken seats. The blood oozed from my mouth, and it seemed as if every breath ' I drew would be the last. The next few minutes were the most awful I ever' witnessed ; oh, that it may never be my lot to experience the like again. Some 4 prayed, others called upon the saints, others swore fearful oaths, and all seem- > ed writhing in the deepest agony. I can only liken the place to a slaughter bouse. The blood streamed down over my face and clothes as if some hug« beast had been slain above me. In this fearful situation were placed 80 or 90 human beings, who, a few moments before rejoiced in excellent health and' spirits, their minds occupied with worldly cares or pleasures ; little thinking they would be so soon called into the presence of their Eternal Judge. What an awful lesson does this shocking event teach those who habitually put off' making their peace with God to some future day, or to a death bed. The wri- ' ter of these few lines will consider himsiif amply repaid, if his description sue- I.' J >*ly wall M§. dy to go out, saturated with e last car with inks th6v had liles an 'hoar ; r by the coise ; eet, or a little . did not give ■' go far at thai lision, but had •mintlpn sated 5 gave way be- nd Farr were being in the e out all right ^r, and a etiBlp' e persons who nt which ap- »m Toronto to ' sight of the looked at my e train began a consterna- excited. At ng imped log Me ewery one of the dan- ay seat, and those sitting i^ith one jerk lending I re- awftil preci- ottom there Bs, hemmed lies add bro- very breath iwf ul I ever gain. Some ad all seem- ^ slaughter some huge ed 80 or 90 health and le thinking ? Ige. What liyput off Thewriw- iptioQ rac- I I fMdfin penaadlng <me finner to seek for reftige in Hnc who promised to be a preaent help unto his people in every time of trial. We remained in the posi- tion above described for about ten minutes, during which time I spoke to sev- eral around me advising them to be patient and wait for help. The top of the oar was then knocked in, giving us light and air,and enabling us to breathe more freely. At this in tant, a crowbar or something of the kind from without grazed my temple, and the blow was about to be repeated, when, by a sudden effort ! grasped the instrument, and called upon the person to desist or he would kill me. Immediately afterwards, a hand, (from the size, I should think it was a woman's) was placed completely over my mouth, so as to nearly suf- focate me. With great exertion I removed it, and shortly after, being relieved firom the pressure above, I succeeded in dragging myself from the wreck and reaching the edge of the canal, whence I was raised to the top by a chain fas- tened under mj shonldera On arising there, i was carried to the switchman's house, and received much kindness from the doctors in attendance, and also f^om many of the Company's servants who were anxiously and actively ren- dering every assistance in their power to the unfortuc%te sufferers." THE SCENE AT THE BRIDGE, AND CLEARING OF THB'WRECK. ■'\iii i The scene which was presented the instant after the terrific wreck had been consummated, beggars all description. The locomotive with its brave driver and fireman, completely submerged; two passenger cars, freighted with precious souls, and a baggage-car, shattered in every conceivable form of des- tructiota. But if this ruthless material destruction was appalling, how ter- rific, how awful, was the crashing out of human life which attended it ! From the splintered ruins of those cars arose cries and shrieks, groans and objur- gations of unearthly intensity : while through their ruptured sides and floors protruded the limbs and bodies of scores of the dead, wounded and dying, who but a moment before were in the hey-day of happiness. Palsied for a few moments, the bewildered survivors could only gaze helplessly upon the horrors before them. A reaction ensued, and then each flew to the rescue, impelled by a common instinct. Immediate assistance was had from the dif- ferent shops, and persons engaged on the works at the Depot. All night, per- severing efforts were made to extricate Ihe bodies from the wreck. Bafts were formed on the ice, to enable the men with long poles and hooks to pro- ceed with their mournful task in safety. All ntght, and all next day the wreckers persevered in their humane efforts until all the bodies were re- - moved, and the debris of the bridge and the cars was cleared. DAY OF FASTING AND PRAYER. * On Friday morning, the day after the accident, the City Council of Hamilton was promptly convened by order of the Mayor, and the following resolutions unanimously adopted : Rbholtis, — ^Thftt the Council having received infbrtnatlon of the drendful accident which has Jtwt happened on the G. W. R. R., in the vicinity of this city, offer their heart- bit sympathy to the sufferers and friends of the deceased. Rksolvbd,— That In humble submission to the Providence of Him, without whom not a Xrrow fiiUeth to the ground, but whose inscrutable wisdom permitted this Cify to be vi- d by a fearful calamity on the Great Western Railroad,, by which some of our most re- spected friends and citizens have Iteen hurried into eternity, be it therefore resolved, that th« inhabitants of this City be respectfully required to set apart Monday 16th of March, as a day of humiliation; they are requested to cease from the ordinary occupations of the week, and meet in their respective congregations on that day, and that proclamation of his Wor- ship be issued to that effect. In accordance with the above resolution, Monday was observed as a day of humiliation and prayer. All kinds of business was suspended, and public worship was held in the various Churdhes. On the evening of Monday one of the largest religious meetings ever assembled in Ilamilton, was held in Knox's Church, James Street, of which Rev. Dr. Irvine is Pastor. Ever^ pew was ■•)-}Ui iW f»r*t. ,, i,i^."i"t«j[^ Il '■ h H ^i^y ^■tit«a> AM H ^11^ flbVeiimlfj HeetaiMl to iiiMiffe «it%fy sotntMMam, 'irbtle mfthv fkoM w«re Ibatbed in teaii. It mm a tJnioti Pk«yer Mettlng, wid jjf M itteiiaed by large numbers from the tarious eongregations In tbe «l^. Before dismiflsing the meeting, at the suggestion of one of the deacons, Mr. Inrine announced a collection ** for the purpose of erecting a monument to Hev A. Booker, when the plates passed round, and nearly 6ne hundred dol- Lirii were collected. It was announced that any partira who desired to oon- vibute to this becoming and truly grateful object might hav6 an oppoitUBlty of dolQg so by handing their donations to anj of the rollowihg ministeini, rft : Revs. E. Ebbs, tf. Ormibtdn, W. Stephenson, Dr. Irvine, Dr. IiagUB, or E. B. -^^ * THE FUNERAL OBSEQUIES. '*'i'^^''M^^ The last, tk4 «Qd mournful duties to the dead wei'ejberirohiied on Subbaih md Monday. The bodies of Bev. Mr. Booker, IVIr. Henderson, Mi^. f. S. BtertDBon, Mr. Staart, and Mr. Bumfleld, were interred on Sunday, and thojse of Captain Sutherland and Adam Ferrie, Jr., with cithers, on Monday. All the funMmls were attended by an immense concourse of people. The city was shrouded In saclccioth ; the bells of our Churches tolled the mournful re- quiem of the slaughtered victims ; and our streets were crowded with long nineral processions, slowly and silently following the dead to the place of lie- {hilture. It seemed as if the entire city had turned out to express their sor- row for the dead and their sympathy with the bereaved. The body of S. Zim- merman was taken to Niagara Falls on Sunday, and buried on Monday, with Masonic honors. Large numbers of leading men from various parts of the Province and the United States were present, and the whole country in the fMaMj appeared to have turned out en maese. It is estimated that upwards often thousaiid persons were present. All seemed deeply a^cted by the loss whldb has been sustained and desurous of paying the last tribute of respect to wo vflparteda ^, •,,, ,4^*;^, i^mi^ixT ffv;^ BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES. ,,,...,., ' tASnTKL StUMCBMAir, OF OLirrON, KlAOABA FALLS, O. W. .. . The late Samuel Zimmerman was bom in HnntingtoA County, Penn., IB the year 1815, and spent his early years in that state. In 1842, he re- moved to the Canadian Provihce, having no capit&l but his own energy aind farsightedness. He said to some persons who enquired of him respecting his oommenoement upon the line of enterprise which he has of late yeai^ ibltd^- ed so successfully, that his only effects. When he arrived in Canada, Wisre a gray horse and buggy. It might be supposed, as he bimself added, that he possessed no more capital than he required for his immediate use. He was then but 27 years of age. He located at Thorold, and his first undertaking was the construction of 4 locks and an aqueduct on the Welland Canal, which involved something like $100,000. Subsequently, he built, under contract, 129 miles of the Great Western Railway, ^e contract price for which, was about $600,000. The building of the first Suspension Bridge at Niagara Fi&lls and of the great railroad bridge at the same place, engaged his attention and commanded his resources. He built the Cobourg & Peterboro', the Port Hope And Lindsay, and the Erie and Ontario Railways in Canada. Mr. Zimmer- man originated, and had just completed the preliminary- arrangements fbr building a new road to the west, "nearly parallel with the Great Western, to the south of that line, and on a shorter and better route. This work was to obst some $10,000,000. It is doubted whether any man poiSeeees the ener- gy And oitpiaoity to successfully assume a work which Providkmoe had: pre- ireoted him from carrying forward. Not long fiiiice, he had purchased a large property M Clifton, Niagara Falls, Ahd iii the vicinity of the Suspension Bridge, including thb fine hotel u known fMi tho *<Clifton Hoii8«," and his excellent taste and liberal ideas irero illustrated in improving this fine estate, and adorning it artisticany. Fifty- two acres on the cliff, directly opposite the American Falls, are enclosed with an iron fence and private hedge. The topography of these grounds is diversified and picturesque. That part nearest the river is level, and this ia laid out in gravelled widks, with shrubbery, forest trees and fountains. Ont fountain vras constructed at a cost of $15,000. These groves and shaded promenades are lighted during the summer evwiiegs with gas; The proprietor's residence stands on a bluff some 60 feet high, midway of the ample grounds. In the summer it is nearly hidden by tJie foliage of the surrounding trees. This dwelling is an unpretending man- sion, but has always been the scone of generous hospitality, whila oooupied by its princely owner, who has just been carried A:om it to his long home. He had perfected the most extended and elaborate plans for Uie estab- lishment near the same spot of an elegant mansion-house, with the proper ac» cessories and surroundings. The foundation of a building of Cleveland sand* stone and Canadian brick, to cost $176,000, were laid last year, and the work was to be prosecuted immediately. His lodges, of which there are four, th« conservatory, and tenements for his servants, are models of taste. His sta- bles, completed last year, cost $48,000. From the terraces on the ground! and the portico of his dwelling, a splendid view of the American Falls is ob- tained. The * 'Clifton House" is near by — one of tbe most complete and popular ho- tels that any watering place can boast. This was owned hy Mr. Zimmerman and was worth over $300,000. At Elgin, on the Western side of the river, at the Suspension Bridge, the deceased formerly owned a large property, which his own liberal expen- diture and judicious enterprise had rendered very valuable. This was sold last year to his friends, Messrs. Pierson & Benedict, for $200,000. At To- ronto, he owned property valued at $400,000. At Hamilton, an estate worth $100,000. He was owner of the steamer Zimmerman, on Lake Ontario, and half owner of another boat, the Peerless — his interest in both amounting pro- bably to $100,000. Some 18,000 acres of land, in different parts of Canada, belonged to him. He estimated this property to be worth $8,000,000. Mr. Zimmerman has been twice married. His first wife was Miss Wood- ruff, the only daughter of a worthy and influential man at St. Davids, near Niagara Falls. This lady bore him two sons, who are still living'-<-John, ag«d 8 years, and Bichard, ag<!d 6. She died in Nov. 1854. On ^e 16t)| December last, he was married to Miss Dunn of Three Rivara, C. S. Thf decease was a man of limited education, but ho was endowad ifijt^ ^l^^uig mental gifts. :;...>. ..,,/. ,,;'. ,i,,: 'd\,,.,i The brothers, Martin and James, both younger than th« deceased, hftTS beMi assodated with him here. They will succeed him in some of his enter- prises. -.;;;. -dUun ,. CAPTAIN SOTHERLAMD, OF HAMOmm. Captain SutMflftnd was bom in 1805, in the island of Hoy, In ttie parlsb of Wallsit Orkney, and went to sea at the age of 17, in the employ of the Eronour> able Hudson's B»y Company tftnd had the honour of sailing with the Bj^ht Hott. Sir John Franklin, to Hjudson's Bay. He subsequently went to the Baltic, to QQll^Hd*^ {^orlugftl, i^pd the Brazils. He was for soine time mate of the Royal WvUil^n. the first vessel that crossed the Atlantic wholly by steam. Oo OAO pcGsnion he was wrecked off the coast of Prussia, and remained for ■liteen hours 4(Al the wreok, with his collar bone broken. He settled in Canft^ in the j^ear 1S31, and WM appointed captain of the steanter Queenston io jl^£ St aftimREMd^ owiBuM m tho TrnvoUsr, Um St. GeocgjB, 0(^)00^, tti m I 12 Eclipi?e, and Sovereign. In the year 1846 he built the steamer Magnet, in the docks at Niagara, which proved herself the best that bad sailed on lake Ontap rio. In January, 1837. he fitted out the Traveller at the command of the go* vernmcnt to carry troops and stcres to Kingston and underwent great difBcul- ties in fdlfilHng his duties. We understand that the late Captain was a ne> £hew of James Sutherland, of Her Majesty's ship Pallas, who distinguished imself in 1806 by cutting out the French Corvette La Tapageuse, off the coast of France, for which gallant conduct he was presented with a splendid gold> mounted sword, from the patriotic fund, at Lloyd's, London, and which is now in the possession of the family here. Capt. Sutherland is the last of three brothers, all ot whom met with a watery grave. To show the esteem in which the deceased was held by those who served < under him, we may mention, that, in 1854, when he retired from the command of the Magnet, the crew, some of whom had sailed with him for six or seven years, presented him with a testimonial of their regard. In January, 1847, he was presented by an English stockholder, of the steamer Magnet, with a magnificent silver salver and other nine pieces. The snlver bore the following inscription : — " This service was presented to Cap- tain James Sutherland, of Hamilton, Canada Wpst, by George Berry Torr, in acknowledgment of his services zealously and faithfully performed. '' Captain Sutherland from his position as one of the oldest and most en- terpr^zing of our steamboat Captains, was extensively known throughput the Province, audit is not venturing too much when we say, that wherever he was knoi9Pn, he was not only respected, he was loved. Frank, generous, manly, open-hearted, always ready to sympathize with the unfortunate and relieve the distressed, he was a fine sample of the British sailor, to which profession be was bred, having been almost cradled on the stormy seas which surround the home of his youth in the Northern part of his native land. The loss of such a man is Itself a public calamity, for it leaves a gap in the social fabric which is not easily filled up. It will be a long time indeed before the memo- ry of Captain Sutherland is forgotten by the public of Canada. Captain Sutherland leaves a widow, three sons and one daughter to mourn his untimely loss. He was a kind husband and father, a friend to the poor, » i\ >>1 ■iif firm patriot, and an unwavering friend. Peace to his ashes. TliiSll .»«■>] rc5f .T> t ^^^^ ^' HENDBKSON, OP HAMILTON. iThe subjoined notice of Mr. J.Henderson, brother-in-law of C. J. Brydges, Esq., managing Director of the Great Western Railway, is from the Hamilton Spectator: c Mr. Henderson, whose melancholy death by the late railway accident we have already chronicled, was a native of Leicestershire, England. He was by profession a telegraphic engineer. For some years previous to his departure fVom his native country for Canada, he was principal assistant to Professor Airey of Greenwich Observatory. His scientific attainments — especially in astronomy and mathematics- were of no ordinary character, and he had letters in his possession from the most di!<tinguishf>d scientific men in England attesting the fact. As a further p^oof of this, we may mention that shortly after his arrival in Canada he was offered* by ProfeSfSOr Airey, the charge of the obse^^vatory in Australia, a po- sition of great importance, and would have proved a lucrative one ; but Mr. Henderson bad determined to push his fortune in Cai;lada, and cobseqtiently declined it. He arrived here in the summer of 1854, hl&ving beeu previously engaged to fill the office of chief clerk of the mechanical department of the Great Western Railway — the duties of which place he discharged with greftt ttbUiW up to the time of his resignation, which occurred in August last. ' While in this position, his kind and amiable dlspotition won for him lim fagnet, in the on lake Onta- md of tbe go> peat diflBcul- in was a ne> distioguished , off the coast pleodid gold- which is now 1 met with a B who served the command six or seven older, of the pieces. The Qted to Gap- srry Torr, ia ind most en- 'oughput the rever he was rous, manly, and relieve ph profession ich surround The loss of social fabric e the memo- :er to mourn > the poor, a ■'■a Mr J. Brydges, is from the accident we He was by B departure to Professor (hematics — tn from the is a further ada he was iralla, apo- e ; but Mr. ibseqtiently previously nent of the with great last. 1 13 reftpect of all who had any intercourse with him ; by those under his charge he was held in the highest estimation, and among the mechanics—with whom his position frequently brought him in contact — he was an especial favorite, and none but those who have seen, can describe the consternation and grief which the news of his death produced amongst them. On his resigning hii position in August last, the employees made it the occasion of presenting him with a beautiful service of silver in token of their regard for him. His object for leaving the company's employ was to become the agent, in Canada, of the Cyclops Iron Works, which position he held at the time of his death. CHARLES BBOWM, OF QALT. ... ,\....v The following brief reference to Mr. Charles Brown, of Gait, is from the Toronto Olobe : Among the sufferers in the late said tragedy, the circumstances attending the decease of Mr. Charles Brown, merchant, of Gait, are striking and affect- ing. Mr. Brown and an elder brother had come to Toronto to make prepara- tions for tbe funeral of their aged faiher, whose remains were sent to Toronto for interment, as the family bad long lived in the City, and were about to make it tbe place of their permanent residence. Mr. Charles Brown arrived in Toronto on the fatal Thursday, and on that day at one o'clock the remains of his father were taken from the house of bis relative, Mr. P. Brown, Church- street, to tbe Necropolis. About three o'clock he lefi his friend's house, al- though earnestly entreated to remain for the night. His anxiety to rejoin his sisters in Gait, who were mourning the loss of their father, was not to be over- come. Providentially, his brother resolved to remain till next day, or both wojld in all probability have lost their lives. Rumors reached their anxious relatives in Gait early on Friday, and for some time they believed that both brothers were gone. But '< one was taken and the other left. " He who was tht}S suddenly removed was not unprepared, for his life was for many years diETtinguished by the most ardent and unostentatious piety, accompanied by tbe most amiable temper and disposition. His life was inde<>d " bid with Christ in God, " and we doubt not when the sudden summons came, he receive ed it with joy, and was at once welcomed to the society and enjoyment of the blest, where bis heart had long been. At the early age of 32 was this young Christian removed ? His remains were removed to Toronto on Monday, and carried from the same house whence his venerable father had been taken four days before, and deposited in the same vault. , >;,{ rnf!' *' Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord ; yea, saith the spirit, they re^t from their labour, and their wot ks do follow them." But we are not uf that class who think that the death of the distinguished and eminent ought alone to be recorded. There is one who has pas^ from amongst us, whose death has brought as poignant sorrow to a generous family, as if the greo^test in the land had fallen. Well may we exclaim, — v-J, . : ' ' • • • ' ' » Leaves have their time to fiill, in «; jifja^rf Mt'Siii'jy xiiVil Jij. And flowers to wither in the north wind's breath, i;.„i ' ' -X '"j ,iiii'ir}:i<iii% And stars to fade— but all -, .! -, ■ Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death! ' "'•"'''*'•• - "Jv* -a':tY:j«9l'>,ny,<ij;:"3h1& JOHN HOBLBT, OF THOEOLD. ,'.v,.j,/ ;,,,,, .T;;,nHfilT 'i^t 5/;^i^^^ ~,;^ .j>ifhv >■ (From the Thorold Gazette.) t*. -: ■ ;u-f^jj;-' r -J ^a The deatb of odr fHend, Mr. John Morley, wilV be regretted by a large number of people in the counties of Lincoln and Welland. It is a serious loss to this village, where he resided for many years, and carried on extensive business as a plough manufacturer. He was a shrewd business man, of very temperate habits, and otherwise of unblemished moral character. He left home on the 9th inst^ for the purpose of establishing agencies at Hamil- ton, Toronto, and other plaeee for th« Mde of hie eelebrated ploaflia» ani u I I- had first made arrangpments tot manofaoturing between $10,000 and $12,000 worth of ploughs before the beginning of May. He brought his plouffh to such a state of perfection recently, that there can be no doubt it excels aU other ploughs manufactured in this country. Mr. Morley was for some years past a member of the council of Thorold, in which capacity he gained, not only the esteem of his brother Councillors, but of the public at large. He was bom in Gaitsgill, near Carlisle, in the County of Cumberland, England, in which county his parents, two brothers and seven sisters at present reside. Bis diird brother, George Morley, has resided with him in Thorold for some time past, and being an excellent mechanic, will carry on the business at heretofore. Mr. Morley was 35 years of age, at the time of his decease. He has left a widow and four children to lament his melancholy death. i ., -. THOSUS BENSON, OF PORT HOPE. - - .,. . ..j (From the Port Hope Guide.) The body of the late Mr. Benson was committed to the earth on Tuesday. The procession that followed the hearse to the grave was one of the largest - if not the largest — that ever accompanied the remains of a citizen of Port Hope to the house appointed for all living. At one o'clock every shop in town was closed. There was not the least hesitation manifested by any to com- ply with the expressed wish of the council, that no business be transacted from one till four p. ra. Two o'clock was the hour appointed for the funeral. Be- fore that time the sidewalks on both sides of Walton street were densely throngr ed from Cavan street to Brown street. The va«t concourse consisted not alone of the residents of Port Hope. We noticed many persons from Gobourg, and^ the townships north and east and west of the town. A feeliog of deep solemn- Hj pervaded the multitude — each man spoke in bated breath. Mr. Benson was one of the most public spirited and prominent citizens of Port Hope. Hit death has created a void in our midst which will not be readily filled. Ma,oy years ago he was in the mercantile business in this town, bat at the time of hit death he was secretary and treasurer of the Port Hope, Lindsay, and Beaver- ton Railway. miiou' . , BAwa. WADE, or coBOUM. ,,,..;„ j,„^,.,i,j,;;,t;f,:. Unlike any previous disaster, the effects of the late railway calamity havo been TAt in every portion of our country. All Canada mourns. Our owo Action has not been unscathed. Poor Ralph Wade is nu more. On Wednesday last a crowd of brother farmers assembled at the homestead, mourning the Um of one Whose enterprise has raised the agricultural reputation of our county and the province. They met to perfbrm the last sad funeral rites and ofier their sympathetic condolence to his afflicted family. Bat they were not alone. Mat chanics and merchants, and members of the learned professions assembled ia great numbers, to show their rei^Mctforthe deceased, uid do honor to his meur ory. About two o'clock the mourufvl corttffe began to move. Among the pall bearers were Sheriff Ruttan, Asa Burnhaai, Harris Burnham, Henry Jones, Nathan Ghoat, T. MoMurty, and Alex. Alcorn Esquires. About 100 vehicles and a considerable number of horsemen followed to the place of interment, St . Peter's Church burying ground. The numerous prizes which were won by our deceased friend sufficiently tes- tify to his enterprise and skill. He obtained several prizes for grain at the Worlds Fair io Paris. He was /Ik, large importer of impr^oved bi'eedsof eattle aod sheep, and no animal, town^ip, county, or Provincial fair passed ovej; witl^- out giving numeirous.prizes to Mr. Walde. Perhs^ts no agriculturist iu the Provdttoe hiui won mwe laurels, and certaiiUy none ever bore themi with ft more pl<ua and tt«as8umiag demeanour. Of mild and unobtrusive mannoinv he lAteii&E«d Qot with Mm aSura of others, but quietlv {Musued ti»e ^xmi^ M« oC Jlift^mijp;. 4i|. ik.eomcqjQ0Bfi«, m enemim wert f«v f^ hd frifiids nif and $12,000 his plouffh to >t it exoels all sr some years ) gained, not at large. He nd, England, resent reside, rold for some ) businesa at He has left *v> . ..MO^il/. t on taesdaj. the liargest ^ izen of Port 'ery shop in ^ any to com- Dsacted from uueral. Ber isely throngr t€d not alone iobourg, and Idep solemn- Mr. Benson ' Hope. His lied. Many e time of his and Beaver- '*■•*.• r»<'^' lamity have • Our own Wednesday tog the loss county aod lQft»>their ilooe. Ua* eerabled la 10 hismtur ng the pall nry Jones, )0 vehicles Tment, St. siently tes- rain at the Is of cattle ove;:wijL^- rist in the im wUh a mann«jn» rifttdaniih I "if t>e to hll afihesf Hto fs gone, buthft name, tuModrnted ^th the agrionltnTkl pro^rity of bar ctniflty and country, will long live after hhn. .— . . ;,j. BXV. DB. HSISK, OP BAMILTOK. Respectiag this very worthy gentleman, who was one of the victims of Iktft late accident, Rev. John Butler of this city, famishes the following brief My acqaaintance with the late Riv. Doctor Hkisb, commenced in tUs country, about three years ago. Of his previous history I am almost en- tirely ignorant. He has told me that he emigrated from Germany, about eight or Bine years since, to the United States, where he romained until 1854. He was introduced to me as a teacher of Qerman, which language I stu- died with him for some time. Shortly after I first knew him,he asked to come and board in my house. His request was complied with, and he remained a member of my family until he was so suddenly removed. About a year and a half ago. Dr. Heise was ordained Deacon by the Bishop of Toronto, and was to have been soon admitted to Priest's orders.— He had been, I understood, a preacher among the Lutherans, in Philadelphia, and at some other places in the United States. He was a man of good abilities, especially for language, and who had not neglected the improvement of his intellect. Hid manner was unpretending, simple and humble. He made many visits among the poor, as he used to call it, **per pedes Apoatolonim" and on the whole was one who tried, in my opin- ion, to do his duty to God, and to his fellow-men. The deceased was Doctor of Philosophy t>f Jena. He has left an aged motlier in Germany, who was dependent on him for support ; and for whom, if any should wish to Subscribe I shall be happy to be the medium of com- monication. — John Bvtlxb. ,.-■.. :■'. .o S5c.;,i». MB. AND JIBS. BtlSSELL, 6t bfeAKTFOBD.' "', '':'Xl.mi^!^ (From the Christian Messengw.) The deeply affecting results of the late railroad catastrophe, do not ap- pdttr in a more heart-moving form as regards tiie family desolations and be- reareiAents caused thereby, than in the death of the two individuals men- tioned above. They Were in the very prime of life ; had a yotmg family of five dear iihildren, the eldest under nine years of age ; tbey were most happi- ly united in conjugal affection ; had passed through a season of peculiar anxiety, in reference to their temporal concerns ; the threatening storm had passed over, and the clouds which had enveloped them were all dispersed ; ev6r;jrthitrK to haitian -neir seemed to be brtght and cheering, promising years oir Ti&c^lx!^& and d6iightful enjoymcttit, When in a ffew lihort moments they ^6rb'hVtt41ed iawBy along with many other dear 'ftllow-dreatures, from every- QiJitg eaWihly and all the endearments of life, by one dread crash of death. JCSN KtrsGrELL, the husband, was a native of Ir^nd, and was bom in the patidh of Maghargell, in the county of Antrim, in the year 1822, where his futher, James Russell, then resided. He came to Canada when a boy along with his father's femily, who settled in the township of Esqnesing. — When grown to be a young man,he left his fhther's house and came to live at Paris on the Gttind River, along with a youthM associate, Who now resides at Owen Sound. Not long afterwards he came to live at Brantford, where hte had his home to the time of his death The deceased was always outward- ly a friend to religion, of sober, steady and industrious habits, and attended li^egtilarly the house of God. But he neglected to seek the soul-saving and vitaal power of the gospel to which he had long listened, whioh is indispensa- bly r6^tfte hi orddr to bring dying men ixy the fsotstool of mercy bs humble •■ppUents to pl«ad in » right manner, witli eamett ories for pardon tad ao- oeptanco with Qod through the precious blood of the Great Redeemer. Ood, who is ricn in mercy, did not leave him, however, to perish in a state of nn* decided formalism, and under the decent guise of mere outward morality. Da- ring the gracious revival of religion, which took place in this town a year ago, John Russell, amongst many others, was led to experience a deep reli. gious concern, and was taught to know that he was a vile sinner in the sight of God, and would inevitably perish if he did not "flee from the wrath to come." Not long after this he joined the Congregational Charch. became a use- fill and active member of the same, took the lead of worship in his family, which had previously been lefb to bis partner in life, and walked befort the world as a ploue servant of God, "Not ashamed to own his Lord, Or to maintain his cause." / '« In his case we see how indescribably momentous this closing in with the overtures of mercy is to a dying man. A few more fleeting months spent in trifling with the affairs of salvation, and what would have been hisfkte and doom when he was precipitated into the chasm of death in a moment, and his soul called into eternity in such an awful sudden manner. '' Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord. Yea. saith the Spirit, for they rest from their la- borp. " ; ' - , Ann Russell, the loving wife and dear mother, whose spirit was called away from earth the same moment with that of her beloved husband, and by the same sad occurrence, was born in the city of London, England, in the vear 1827, and came to this country when she was very young along with her father's (amily, James Hearne, who hati long resided in the village of Burford, now called Glaremont, in the county of Brant. Ann Russell was a child of early convictions and prayer, and was often known to be deeply concerned for the salvation of her soul when yer quite young. Some time after her marriage, Mrs. Russell united with the Congregational Church, and filled her place as all church members ought to do — with punctual regular- ity. Years had rolled away, her husband had been brought to a saving knowledge of the truth, the sun of temporal prosperity had begun clearly to ■bine on every earthly concern, when lo ! with the celerity of a passing mo- ment she was called to meet death in the coM waters of the fatal canal, leav- ing children, and all earthly things for ever behind her. EBV. ALVBKD BOOKBR, OF HAMILTON. •'I'.'l .•!! .7r'>j,i^fi.;-i Rbv. Alvrvd Boorbb, Pastor of the Park street Baptist Church, Hamil- ton, was born at Nottingham, England, in the year 1800. He was converted in the year 1820, at the chapel of Ease, St. Mary's, Nottingham, and was or- dcined Pastor of the Baptist Church, at Paradise Place, a few years after.— He had charge of that church until his removal to Canada, which took place in the year 1842. After remaining in Montreal about 8 months, he removed to Hamilton in the spring of 1843, where he succeeded shortly after in organ- izing the regular Baptist Church, of which he remained Pastor until his death. During the whole of his ministrations in England, and for several years in Canada he received no remuneration for his services, depending for his sup- port upon his own private means. Among those who lost their lives by the recent awful catastrophe at the Desjardin Canal, none will be more missed than the subject of this brief sketch. In addition to his city charge, he had a congregation at Wellington Square, whom he supplied on a week day. Since the opening of the Toronto Railroad he had availed himself of it as a mode of conveyance going down j&'di'e ftoih.a A great f pftdffk an act Of the wcl^ai known or wl^< Hislai remov more anxiel myste iraly to W I I >ftrdon and t«> leemer. Ood, a state of un* morality. Du- 8 town a year oe a deep reli. er in the sight I the wrath to became a use- in his family, ced before the g in with the >ntbs spent in n hisfkte and ment, and his lessed are the from their la- it was oalied ibaod, and by gland, in tho g along with he village of Russell was a to be deeply Some time 1 Church, and stual regular- to a saving nn clearly to • passing mo- pai^al, leav- irch, Harail- ts converted and was or- lars after. — 1 took place he removed er in organ- il his death. il years in for his sup- >phe at the 'this brief Wellington be Toronto oing down IT %Wt ^r^^<j& 'aiiH r«^^ng In the evenh|^— and Itwatl^te MttlM0l|| flroiii a visit to Uiat place that this terrible calamitv bcctirt^d. ;_ As a dbristtan and a cbrintlan minltit^r be iras highly krid detf^iYMlf <^ ^fimed y^y all who had the nrivile.cre of his hCquaintarUrc. His death will •h&^ great and sore lo^, not oplfy to hiia o>^o church and congr^gA'tioU, wIVOTfl'TO ^d faithfully served for many years, but to the publtc g^nofally. as, hc'td6k an active aind prominent part in all the great moral and b^hevol^t TiMiA6tna[it^ pf the day. From an intln^^te acquaintance with him for iiett^l fearf^idt J'9 Jl^ad formed a higti csttmute or his irdllgious and ti^orativor'th. Wf> taui nown but few men as sincerely and eai'Destly devoted to hl^ 'illarttct'!} WorV, or WQo manifested the saihe interest in the progress of ci^ang^Hdal rilV^iOfi. ^is last pulpit labors on the Sabbath ptrovtous to his sudden and mytiferldm removal^. to anotlier woi'I.d, were characterized, we have b<»«fn itjfhrrafed by a more than ordinary degree of earifcnhesss and fotvor, of df}ep and heartreflt anxiety for the salvation or his people. But it has pleased GM, ih a ni6ilt mysterious manner, to remove htm from amongpt ns ; ^ud of Mm it may \k truly said, he " res^sfrom his labors, and his works ^o fotlow him." -•-•-♦- <» J.r.ilJ Ol«MU ■*'/>£ THE COBONEB'S INQUEST, lo n^^^f o.nv.-) «r;i nn,<:.-A 'J r 'IJf V/u.! ^^"bm- .Iu*^''V^;, ^' t)ty.-Fndaf, March 13M, 1857.- ... . J , Q^ Fri^y, the 13th of March, after the Coroners— ^H. % fetfV!,' fisi^., «nd Pr. Bpsebrugh— had completed their preliminary labors lu examining and .^^eMIjying the bodieEi, they procefedod to the Board Ilpom of the QWat wfeil- tern Railway, where the fdllow|ng gentlemen were swoi'n in on the'Jirry : ' Jaioes Osborne, Jos. Lister, John Moore, John Galbraith, LevlBecmih, iloherl ^'ij, Jesse Nlckerson, Thouifts B. Harrii, Rdbert OWkft-be,' Wfti.' 'A. % tor, Alex. HamiUon„ Lewis R. Obtbey, Chas. Magilf, Jatoes MbrntyM, Horfttjd, Cafe, James Camming?'. James Mc^tyr'e wa^ then elected foreman, aud the 7tiry were dtreeted to ihgrfpe how Dodald Stukrt and matiy others came to their Ufeath. ^cy Nnn pi^bCMde^ ]'■ pi'bbecdbd to View the various bodies, and ittihiediately afterwards ad^oomcid l!l two o'clock on Saturday, 'Second Pai/.---Saii)fda^^Marth 11. ' ' '''' The jury met at the Court House, at 2 o'clock P. M. f Corpnei;s ^ull and Jones, presiding. A great number of gentlemen were in attetidanlie. 'Mr. Stephen Richards, barrister, attended to watch the Inquest, on boh^f •^ the Crown. His Honor Mayor Moore was likewise present, as were Thos. C. Keefer and J. F. Clarke, Esqs., civil enginrers. . RiCHAtiD F. Jkssup sworn. — I am Travelling Auditor to the Great Weet- ■«m Railway Company, and have been in the Company's. employ since A,»gu6t, )1854. I was on the tmin when the accideot occurred. I was on the la-st ca^ *ofi thb train. After wo, passed the switch, I felt an unusual.motiop, which in- duced, me to look put and see what wa9 the matter. I ^y/ the conductor cf'iilie outof the other car, and he seemed to be endeavorini; to get the coh'hefcito'n joint out, but as as he could not succeed, he leaped ojff. I leaped ptt" as the tcar went over. The lifct truck of the hindmost car was left iph the Ir&ck ; that car was held suspended for hall a n)omcnt or so by the riri^rbolt. Ther.e ,,wa^np cry. no^ any signal before the engine got on to thebvldjje ;. di^hftbtsay rwhat Was the cause ,of the accid<!nt, but think thiijtthc Ibcbmotive wHs n6t ot „uie track before ii reached the bridge. A brakchian ^s on th$ bind plat- r^nn., : . "Tu answer toMr.Jtoes Osbotnfe— There was no bftmpirtg'tifwiftel^. I think I should have kiiown if the loconioilveor cars had been off the track.— Thikt4 ii'otild have beeti i jefking feeling «xpef lenCcd. Have beela bu it train %hed li ^ off the trtl6k, ahd ^It no »dch ebnsatidn t«9w as then. Felt lio II I i It till Ui« engine mtiit iMt^e been on the bridge. Heard the tlmbere tf the'bridfce oraehlng before I got up. Don't know bo*.7 the oars wete bent, bat obeerved that the raile were upread out, or bent. The ipecd, I imagine, would be from 5 to 8 miles an hour. I think a roan cjuld get on at that speed.— Tbeiwitcbman was at his poet when I got off. ll^cforp coming to the ■witch, the usual signals were given, but beard no signal ait&rwards. To Mr. Case— M;^ opinion is, that the engine did not get off the track till It had reached the bridge. To Mr. Richardi) — 1 he baggage car was towards the bay ; saw two men crawl out of it while I looked nt it ; it lay nearly east and west, somewhat oIk liquely. The passenger cars lav nearly crosswise ; could see a portion of the flnit car. The last car was nearly perpendicular, resting on the top of the wall . To the Coroner — Did not wait to examine much, but came to the city for medical nssifitance ; jumpe4,oii a fartpe'r'^ waggon oil the road, after running up the bank and crossing the fuspension bridge. Thinks that no portion of the second car was in the water ; did not examine closely. To Mr. Magill— Cannot account why one side of the bridge wa^ torn away more than the other. "' ' '" To Mr. Qwynne — I believe that I should have known had one wheel of the engine been off the track. Edwaud Levieh Tsworn,) — Am baggageman and was on the train when this accident happened. Was in the baggage car next to the engine and ten- der. It was the 4.10 or accommodation train ; we made all the stations on time. Henry Urquhart, the express-man, was with me in the baggage por- tion of the baggage-car. Was looking out of the door on the right-^and side when the train came up to the bridge. Noticed nothing wrong. Saw the switchman with a green flag in his hand, which signifies that "all is right- go on." Just as the engine got to the bridge, heard one sharp signal to put on the brakes, and with that I saw the engine sink through the bridge. Was sitting on the baggage close by the door. Heard the crashing of the bridge, and saw the engine-driver hold up both bands ; with that I leaped out, and lighted on the parapet of the bridge. Had just tiine to leap out and save myself. In answer to Mr. James Roy — Was going at the usual low rate of speed. To the Coroner — Saw the cars go over. The trucks of the last car were left on the track. Did not observe the engine strike the bridge ; it seemed to sink down through the bridge. Cannot say whether the engine was off the track or not. It did not strike me as bning off the track. Felt no jolt- ing. Did not see the locomotive deviate from the track. Was looking at it, and am sure it did not strike the side of the bridge. To Mr. James Osborne — ^The first noise was the creaking of timbers. — Could see along the bridge. Just as the engine-driver whistled, the engine was going on to the bridge. Had told Mr. Muir that witness thought there was something wrong with the locomotive, or the engine-driver would n<it have whistled "on brakes." He whistled just as he went on the bridge. To the Coroner — The entrance of the engine on the bridge and the whis- tle were simultaneous. To Mr. Richards — Thinks the engine began to sink before the whole of it was on the bridge. The locomotive appeared to sink down by the fore- part. Thinks all Uie locomotive, but not the tender, was on the bridge when it sank. Was not more than a foot from the edge of the wall when I jumped off. The bridge was broken about a month since, by the breakingof an axle of the locomotive, which broke up some 7 or 8 tics of the bridge. We changed cars for a day or so there, until the bridge had been mended. To Mr. Nicker9on — The marks on the ties where the bridge was broken before, were between the rails. Saw^some fresh marks on Thursday laat ..•.;^V ird tht tlnben tf in W6t6 beat, bnt I imagine, would I at that Bpi>ed.— 'og to the iwitoh. off the track till . , saw two men wt, somewhat oiv ) a portion of the le top of the wall, ne to the city for ad, after runnfog bat no portion of bridge wa^ torn md one wheel of n the train when ) engine and ten- II the stations on he baggage por- » right-^and side rrong. Si^W the t "all is right— rp signal to put the bridge. Was ig of the bridge, leaped out« and ip out and save w rate of speed, he last car were dge ;^ it seemed » engine was off £. Felt no jolt- is looking at it, g of timbers bled, the engine 8 thought there ■iver would nc"t the bridge. ;e and the whis- re the whole of n by the fore- lie bridge when when I jumped kingof anaxle e. We changed go was jbroken Thursday but I 1» Tha marks on the ties must have been ocoasionad by the breaking of lomt portion of the locomotive. TU03US Tkidutk. — Am switch-man and brakesman at the Deijardln's Janotion ; was on duty when this accident occurred. When the signal was given, I opened the switch. The train came on. David Grombie, anothe- Bwitcbmao, had got one toot on the steps, but did not get on as he observed the locomotive going down. He had goue about the length of a passenger car before he jumped off. Suw Barrett and Mr. Muir iump off, and knew some- thing was wrong. Could not sec the locomotive. When it passed me I did not observe anything was wrong. Saw a man come out to jump, but he went down with the cur. Just as Mr. Muir jumped thd hind car went over. The bind truck remaiucd on the track. Heard uu cracking, xnd saw nothing wrong, tin all went over. From the switch to the bridge is about 70 or 71 feet : have been told so. It in usual to blow for " brakes on" '' brakes off again." Heard one f>harp whistle afterwards for brakes on. Could not see the locomotive, but should think that the whistle was given just as the locomotive got on the bridge. No. 3 freight train had pusf «d down a little before, and in passing over it afterwards, 1 had examined the bridge, atd found it all right. It was my duty to examine It after any train passed over it. Wbeu I went to look at the smash-up, liome one must have turned my switch on the main line. — Near the telegraph office there was a bright mark, and further on a rail waa bent, and the chair broken, as if the wheel had not been on the rail and then a part ot the rail wa^ cut off and two connecting rods of the switch were broken, as if the flange of tiie wheel had cut them through. One of the rode wai dragged down the lioe. To Mr. Richards,— I examined the bridge closely. Do so every time I go on duty, and also after the postage of each train. Spent about fifteen minutes each time. When the train came in, I was standing three feet west of the •witch. Observed a jolting till it got to the bridge. The last car had passed me when the whistle blew. Could not see the locomotive. Saw my fellow- switchman try to get up on the hind platform. Am positive that all the train hud passed me befure the shrill whistle sounded. Saw both sides of the bridge after it passed me. Did not sec the locomotive or cars deviate from the track. It was on the Toronto line where the marks of which 1 f^peak, were mode. — The first was about the distance from the switch as where the inner rails cross each other. Saw a sort of scratch between the connecting rods of the switch. To Mr. Gwynnc,— Cannot isay how long a time had elapsed after the freight train had passed. I was then in the house, and Crombie was at the switch. I had plenty of time to examine the bridge. I turned the switch when I heard the whistle, and Crombie was standing near me. The switch is always right for the main Hue and we have no right to open it until a Toronto train whistles. 1 am sure that the chain or chair was broken by that |rain. It could not be turned if broken. , David Cbo.mvi£, sworn — Am bridge-tender and switchman at the Deqar- din's Canal. Was on duty on Thursday afternoon. Goes on duty at seven o'clock in the morning, and generally leaves by the Toronto train. My proper time to leave i> six o clock at night, but my brother-switchman generally relieves me in time to ride home. The switch was adjusted for the Toronto train by him. I was near by, and got on the train as usual. It was going at a speed of about six or seven miles an hour. I experienced a jolt, and heard a sharp whistle at the same moment, and leaped off I was only on the steps. I looked forward, and saw that the bridge and the engine were falling dowo. I called to out Mr. Muir and others to jump for their lives. Cannot say whether the engine was entirely on the bridge when it commenced falling. The hind truck was left on the rails. I think all the locomotive was o/er the bridge, bat am n^t certain. The car was standing up against the wall and I went to C«t a ropt to bt iat down into it, to rewae thoM uuide. I cxunined tht tnwk 'I 1 I ( I SI 1^. Kfm^ ^\g)i%y.f^^^ Ipund tb»t tb.«i f;|iil Torojato vj^^ds of Ui« awitch wa? ben|t: there was a mark on the rods and on the cnair in woicl^ the tail ifi set.' Toe mar^ wafl Qn Xke middle ; it was of np consequence. Ode of the I'bds Was cab Cig^t through. There were fresh marks on the ticsiipto the bridge, bdb^ipned. I.bplieve, by one of the truck-wheels getting off the track. My Td^isaAfhr tt^l^^iogsojs, that the same engine got damaged just atthesamespbt in'^Ttitie UM> fto4 tbep the same ^ind of marks were made, and th6 Wheel 6amd w^fn aJ^u^aga inch of the ad^eof the timber on which th6 k'aljl w^s fixed. ''AfiMt time 1 the trflyu) get over ia saftity, a^d the brakes w^re not whistled d6wn tid ii'gOtOVer. •:.::„ ', ''" ' .n.nw ./r^TM.un To Mr. Robert Osborne.--Did uot ^e the Engine Driver whien the endn^ wfint 4own, !", To Mr. , Richards,— I wa8aboutl2 or Hyar^soff the bridge wheu']^ mfoped. IPhe engice ai^d tender went down to^c^ther, ahd ma^t have been 'on w^bridgje^it the, same moment. Tribute caihQ on duty about six ii!it)iutcy h^one tl^p TiorontD train came. It was about ten minutes before that, tbiat th|9 ^^ight train passed* I followed the freight train, and examined the bridge. iCv^ryjthiog appeared to be right until the locomotive got to the bridge. Do Qot ^noiw whei^ier Tribute examined the bridge or uot. Two minnted were siLHicit^nt to make the examination. Had no instructions to make a minut^ wamiuyitibn. Tribute couid not have spent many minutes. It was a hetLvy freight ti'.avQ of about fifteen or twenty cars, and drawn by a heavy Englisn eng^e. There were marks made by a train in February, and othojrs fn June lisp, as if t^e wheels had beeu off the track. When freight train ruribff, twelVe or fourteen ties and the corner part were brokdn. None of the stringers were i^ijured. Believe? no part of th«^ bridge, which was injured on t|hat pccawbii,' hut was taken anay aod replaced by new work. The vessel which stru^ the bridge I^st suipmer wUh her mast, made scarcely any observable mark oltf th^ «i«.t side of the bridge. m .^ The Inquest was adjourned about seven p. m., to meet ftgjain o$i Tji^i^^cll^f at the MecUttuics' Institute at eleven o'clock ft. m. . \ ,, •,:*.jhu u,;j lu ^-^i^'\i^^ Third Day.— Tuesday, March, 17. -J- « iuq bud T Thfi Jury met at the City HaU, ftt 2 o'clock, P. Mj. ,, Mf. Coroner Bull said as the wreck of the bridge had l>een tejkeo} 9Ut of tha. water, he would suggest that before proceeding to take the eridenp^, the Jurors would proceed. to the scene of the disaster, and view the tifnberB of the bridge, which had been preserved. The Coroners and Jury tt^a;,pro* deeded to the spot, with the uader^twdiug that they 'vtrould propee^ wji^ tiM evidence on their return. •^ - The Jury met again at 7 o'clock in the evening, to hear further evidence. Edwin Richaardson. I am conductor on the Hamilton and Toronto branch. TYf^jn i'ost Office car ; was asleep. The first shock that I felt was thQ'l^HiM■ «*^yiQg aWay, and the breaking ot timber, aild felt tfie ashes from the etov.e ying, about me, aod the watijr rushing in. Was not acting as condifctot'. .'VfhtJU the car fell down, X kicked the glass out of the window and got out, biit ,^pJ4 render nq assistance, as my back was injured. After the excitertl^ was somewhat ovor, I asked Orombie (the switchman) what was the cause of ^H»j5 accident, be said it was a loose wheel or sprung axle. I got a lamp and TVefli out and examined the track, near the switch, and from that I tracked the ,>jifh?.el to the abutqaent of the bridge. My impression was that only oms Mm "^^^^^^^ ^'^ ®^' I helleve that so long as the engine remaliied Oh this |ri^|J(i% bridge was perfectly safe, but even dividing thfe Weight of the lobo^ mwilVff that wbud have$u(pcleat fall \o break the timbers of th« bridj '' "^y^i^ Q^ein % ^^lb(er» of the bridge, hut they are not noW'ii^ Wbbii the fitch vas bent; Mlifset. ffij B i*6as Was cut ?e, bdc^i^ed. My rc^fisofiJ ibf kb 8p6t in JTttijo tl 6aiae wtthrn ftled down til* iiiea the enefno Mdge wj^en/lj T. have Wen '6n( t six niliiutey that, th^it the >d the bridge, e bridge. Dd minntes wefe nake amiquti • was a heaivy Jeavy English )thcr8 in June runbflr, twelVe stringers wer$ tiliat pCcasibn, ich struclk^ the e mai-k atf th^ 1 teke» 9ut of the eridenqfi, y tj^e ti'inbers propeed Witk iter eyidbnoe. •onto branoh. was theflb^ om thereto v,e 8 bondifctot'. got out, biit excltertl^ the cause of ti a lamp and at I tracked iat onl^ onb libedbhthe >f the lobch bridt *fi th^ ft! II- I • I IK wfte fresh marks. I always thought the bridge was safe, unless an engine gbi bflTtb* track. To Mr. Richards.— The locomotive would break the cross pieces and fall through. The side pieces, too, would give way. There are five bearings to that, engine. '""To Mr. Cummiugs. — (Examining the diagram.) There was ice and snow there. The marks are now mo-tly trodden out. MtCHAKL DcFPisT. — Am a breaksman on the Toronto and Hamilton road ; hare been snch fourteen months. Was standing between the baggage and the first patsseogei cars, as the train passed the switch ; I saw Oromble try to get on, but be did not seem to do so , and I heard a whistle to put on bralces. then ^rpe^my bead and immediately jumped. Felt motion of the engine, driver had left off steam. This sensation was fult about the length of half (^ car afr ter the whistle. Saw that the engine had gone and jumped, falling i^bout four yards off the walj. When I looked round, all the cars had gone oyer. Pon't recollect seeing any trucks on the track. Jumped off on the side nex^ Dttudas. It wpuld take about a minute to run frona the switch to the bridge. } supposed the whistle was to clo^c up to permit Crombie to get on. Was go- ing about fsix or seven mil^s an hour. The engineer whistled on brakes abo^t the length of a car off the bridge. It was about the length of the engine, tender and baggage cat from the switch when he whistled. To Hi\ Roy. — Sometimes I put on the brakes without being signalled, ip oase of crossings and bridges, or when the train was on a curve* Tp i^jc, Gwynne.— I think I had not come opposite the wall of the bridge. To Mr> Riphards.— Cannot say positively ths^t the engine was npt on the bridge when he beard the whistle. Edward Barrett — Was conductor on the ill-fated train. Hav? been a^ee years in the Company's service, and a little over a year as conductor^ I was iitauding on the forward platform, on the hind car. Heard the whistle* aod jumped, as I heard some one call out '-jump!" I lit about half-way alopfi the wall. I called to Mr. Muir, who jumped. So did Mr. Jessup, apd aQ<(^er man tried to jump. The locomotive was about ha't-way between th^ switch and the bridge when I heard the whistle. Felt no unusi;lal motion on the tiain, Have been on a locotuotive when it ran off tl^c track, but felt up jolting, running about twenty-five or thirty miles an hour. Was not now go- ing more ttiau eight miles an hour. The switch was all right. Saw the switchman with a green flag. Experienced no motion of the cars. Thinks S{)m^thing was wrong with the engine, or the bridge would not have given WfkJ, that is, if the engine were on the track. Examined the track immediate- ly, and found that a piece of the rail bad been cut off. It was about four ipches long, and perhaps one-eighth of an inch thick. To Mr. James Osborne. — Was not looking nt the engine before I jumped. When i Ipoked <^he was gon?, and I could not see her. Tp Mr. Uichardfi— I jumped when I heard the cry. Tbo whistle was a few seconds be(bre. The crack aud the cry were at the eanie tipie. Have but a poor recollection about it. „^ To Mr. Gwyunc— The marks were fresh. ' ''• To the Coroner — The hind truck of the last car remained on the rails. Wm. K. Mutn— Is Assistant Superintendent of the Great Western Kail- way. Has been in the Company's service for three years and a half. Was on the train when the accident occurred. Was sitting on the last seat of the last bar reading, on approaching the bridge. When the oar which I was in was on the switch, felt a jerking motion. The engine had not then reached the bridge. Got up and opened the door, and saw Crombie, the switchman, holding up his hands, and hetyrd him sing out to jump. Leaped off the platA}rm, and landed 4k tiM bridge a few fe«t from the edge of the canal. Whpo I bad twraed r I S2 round, the engine and ears had all gone down. Thinks that one of the wheels of the locomotive waa off the track, occasioned by the breaking of an axle. Has seen the bridge severely tested, aod considers it perfectly pafe. Never had any complaints made to him in relation to the unsafe condition of the bridge. Is quite satisfied that the passenger cars were on the track ; thinks that the marks on the ties and rods were made by the broken wheel— does not think that tbey could Have been made by any other part of the machinery. At seven o'clock the Jury adjourned till Wednesday, to hear further evidence. . fi.ciil .HfrAMii \)^, My Fourth Day. — Wednesday, March 18. u.f ttv The Jufy met at seven o'clock in the evening at the City Hall, Goroneri Bull and Rosebrugh presiding. Dr^NA House sworn. — I live on the Toronto side of the bridge, about 100 yards from the track, on the north side of the track near the edge of the lake; 1 was at home when the train came up. I saw it just as it was at the switch. I heard a noise soon after the locomotive passed the switch — a rumbling noise, not the usual noise of the train — that attracted my particular attention ; I looked and instantly heard the whistle. I supposed at the time, and made the remark to my daughter, a girl of the age of 16, that the cars were off the track. The next I saw was the engine give a kind of a shake when it was just at the Toronto end of the stone work ; the engine gave a quiver ; 1 saw the engine plain till it went on the bridge ; the masonry partly hid the engine f^om my view, but could sec the smoke pipe very plainly ; it was shaking : am certain of ic ; the cars all gave a shake ; when the locomotive came to the bridge could see it quite plainly ; when the fore part went on the bridge, the hind part tipped up and gave a shake , then it seemed to shoot on a little further ; saw it break loose from the baggags-car ; could see a space between them ; the bag^^age car was just coming on the edge of the bridge ; the engine was half way on the bridge when it canted ; the front part of the engine went down first ; did not see it fall against either side of the bridge ; saw the bag* gage car ^o down as well as the rest of the train ; noticed a man on the engine; saw him jump ; this was when the locomotive commenced to tip ; don't know whether it was the engineer or cot ; saw two men jump off the hind car ; the baggage car whirled round towards our house ] the first passenger oar ran along, tipped up, and turned upside down ; it turned over sideways — I thought 80 at the time ; ran out to see if I could assist any one ; that is all I could Bee ; was in the house with the window closed. William Scott deposed. — lam foreman of the track repairers from the bridge to near Dundas. My section includes the bridge ; have been in that capacity since October last ; have to go over the track twice every day ; had been over twice on Thursday ; the last time was about 4 o'clock in the after- noon ; at that time the track and bridge were all right ; have to see if the stringers of the bridge are closely^' packed." I did soon Thursday ; may have been ten minutes going across the bridge and back ; have seen three locomotives go over the bridge together ; they were drawing a heavy train \ there was no crack ; always considered the bridge safe. James T. SEROEANi' said, I have formerly been Inspector of masonry, bridges, &c., on the Great Western Railway ; left in October last, after be- ing 5^ years in the company's employ ; went to the scene of the late acci- dent at about 7 o'clock ; did not examine the marks until Tuesday. Some 18 or 20 months ago there were some additional floor-joists put in ; it was supposed there was enough for the strength of the bridge ; saw 2 engines running over the bridge together, before that time, and I noticed the track on the bridge settle slightly. At that time the longitudinal stringers were pine ; afterwards they were of oak, I ordered the additional needle^pins in ; It mmamI to be stiff enoagh after that ; saw nothing unsafe afterward ; after .7:1; ss of the wheels ig of an axle, fafe. Never Qditioo of the track; tbrnks wheel — does 'he machlDery. * hear further Jail, Coroners ge, about 100 e of the lake; at the switch, itnbling noise, attention ; I and made the were otf the en it was jast |r ,• I saw the id the engine shaking : am came to the le bridge, the •ton a little pace between L* ,* the engine s engine went saw the bag* n the engine,* ; don't taiow ind car ; the Qger ear ran 8 — 1 thought an I could ers from the een in that yday; had in the after- o see if the ■eday ; may seen three »vy train : masonry, ^ after be- 3 late acci- f^y- Some 'Q ; it was 2 engines ie track on rere pine ; ins in ; It ^; B«Ttr hy made any report that the bridge was unsafe ; when the bridge was being put tip I said it looked slight, and would not go over it before an engine had driven over. By the continual running of trains over the bridge it would be- come weaker, and if not looked after might become unsafe ; think the tim- bers were broken by a dead weight ; saw no marks of a blow strong enough to have carried the bridge down ; it may have been a sudden jerk, like the engine dropping down. While I had charge of the bridge, I went over it every day to see that the bolts were screwed tight ; Saw no mark on the ties as if the locomotive had fallen ; some bolts would often get loose — those thro' the end of the diagonal braces ; can't say how often ; it might happen once a week ; the reversing of an engine on the bridge might have an injurious effect upon it ; when I reported anything wrong, the Company always made everything right ; should think the marks on the ties looked very slight for a wheel running on them ; the quality of timber in the first ties was, in some of them, not so good as it might be. If the bridge had been mode with stronger ties, and planked with 3 or 4 inch oak planks, it might possibly have sustained an engine falling oif the track. I have been on other railways be- fore ; I think the original braces and stringers in the bridge are too slight; when the ties were broken about a month ago, I should think the structure of the bridge must have suffered ; every "rack" hurts a bridge of that kind. To Mr. Richards. — I have been on a train when a locomotive has run off the track ; think the whole train would be shaken by such an event ; don't think the marks on the ties were caused by a locomotive ; if a locomotive had run off the track, it would have made a mark on the needle beams ; saw no mark such as would be made in that case ; the track may have spread, and the engine dropped throu^i^b ; have oljserved where the ends were bn^ken off ; one side broke at a splicing that is on the lake side ; the breakage was at about the centre of the splice ; there are three iron bolts through it. A bolt, driven in '* snug," does not weaken the wood as much as a loose one; think two bolts might have been sufficient ; Mr. J. T. Clark was engineer on the road when the bridge was built ; Mr. Whipple constructed it ; told him at the' time the timbers were slight ; slight bridge requires more attention than a heavy one ; when I noticed the bridge tend, years ago, the cords did nut bend ; have observed a crack in one of the needle beamf>, which looks like an old crack. My impression on seeing the remains of the bridge was, that it was broken bv a dead weight ; if the needle beams had broken, some part of the cars would probably have been left ; think a heavier bridge might have been stfer ; if a dooring had been built up even with the rail, strong enough, it ifonld have been safer in my opinion than it is now. Fifth Day — Thursday, March 19M. '^" The Jury met at seven o'cloch, p. m. — the same coroners presiding. - • Wm. McKat, deposed— am conductor of the freight train, No. 3, East, and No< 6. West ; have been in that capacity for 15 months ; have run most ef the time between Hamilton and London ; have had charge of very heavy tn^ins ; frequently I have had three engines, and once 36 loaded cars ; never had any suspicions as to the bridge on the canal ; never heard the bridge crack except on frosty mornings, when it sometimes cracked, like other wood- en buildings ; passed over the bridge at a : 20 on the afternoon t)f the day on which the accident occurred ; did not hear it crack then, nor did I hear any one make such a remark ; there would never be three engines on the bridge at one time — only two ; we never go rapidly over the bridge ; it is up grade foing west, and when going east, we have to stop at the junction ; I think, owever, we may sometimes have parsed the bridge at the rate of 13 or 14 miles an hour ; never felt any jarring upon the bridge. On Thursday last I stopped in Hamilton, and went to the scene of the accident ; saw marks as If mik4o l^y the Q^ge of a wheel, pretty clear to the rail ; the mark fippeared f rlT II ( i-.'p f* i !,#?!' i I' tresb; bftvenoi examined the marks sinoe; mj impi^essfQa tlieA night •waf, ibat the engine was off the track. I have b&d aa axle break wnca rannfogfi ftraia. When an axle breaks, one ot t^o wheels leans in Qrst ; the wheel that .U slack on the rail generally goes off first, especially at a curve. We have no {>articular instructions respecting the Desjardin Briiige ; Me have no general nstructions. Whpn going into junctions, we are to have our traiqs at full command, ; if we see all is clear, I consider we are allbwcd to go directly ih] •pevcr saw anything on the bridgo to make me uneasy; never thought the bridge would be safe if the engine should run off the track. £ipwARD tiri,RDMAN was swom — He said : am an engine-driver oil the Great tVeatern ; | drive the engine Panther , nave been driver for two yeftM ^u (be (Jreat Western Railway, and flJtogetber for upwards of four years ; the JPaatErer is a he^vy engine — one of xne lieaviest. I drove No, 3 freight oh ^IjprMiy, and went over the bi*idge at 5:20; heard nothing break on the bri(^ge, and beard nobody say anj^thing about such an occurrence ; never M'aM any ofae i<ay that the bridge wks unsafo— all the eh«;ine-drivers consider It pafe; Wtis y/voirklng i6r throfe years in the shotp before! drov6 ; a regulto djipr hliceshfp to the business is seven years. I know something abotit the e6h8trUbtion of locomotives ; was at the bnd^e on Thure3ay, ten miaut^ Jtftbr <hc>ccideiit. I went to the other sule ot it the next rfldmlngi at hitie b'clodk ; think the marks were fi-e^h, for there was ti blue mai*k oh the rails Jhcit riisted bVer, as if the flaiige of a whieel had been travelling on the rail. ^I ddn't (Hibk a car wheel would have made audh uh ithpresslbn ; tbfe InaHc Wasdii tlie Taltfe i^ide df the tracl on the land side of the rail. I amal- toost surb it was a new mark; did not trace it much beyond the switch; drir heivy ebgines make very slight marks on f^'asty ^ound ; have scfed 'tine of the track wheels loose ot brbken. It might get off the rail, but not Very well off the engine ; have seen engine wheels kee'p the track with a bent axle ; a idight axle Would cause slight marks similar to those I observed . 6n Thursday. I have knoWn a heavier engine than the Oxford, with all the wheels off the track, make slightei* marks than those lAade on Tbufedasr "hifebt; H a bridge j^iVes ^Vhotl 'we |)a^ over it, we can easily discern it; I ^flbn't thfiik the truck wheels of the Oxford were heavy edough to maike 'the irai>r«Jssioh& visible : tliink the trail wheel of the engine teade the imurk ^on the rail, switch, road, &c. hTat would have thrown the engihe bffdirhbt- ly the whSel dropped. ^, RictiARD feosD dcspbsed— I kik Thspector of tii^dges oti tbV ea^t^rti fllVi- 'iioh of ihe (jireat Western Railroad Iroin Suspension Bridge to Woodsibfelk ; have been in that capacity since October last ; was inspector of stdtiob biiild- ings on Toronto line before that ; have been conticoted with railways for 20 years ; consider myself able to judge when a bridge is right or wrong ; ©x- 'ttmined the bridge about a fortnight or three weeks before the accident ; it "^Ira all right ; always considered the bridge a safe one, and am a^arft of ilo Report ever having been made that the bridge was not safe ; was in Hamiltbn 'Oii Thursday last, went to the bridge directly on hearing of the accident ;*<i- fonnd the liiarks on the track where either an engine or tender had been off the track ; found a rail bent — a piece of iron shaved off — and a connecting- rod broken ; these marks were perfectly fresh ; I swear to that positively ; [that was about 6 p. m., on Thursday ; thought at that time the eti^itie haid ■gone off the track before it reached the biridge. There was an eccentric rod Just at the extreme end of the bridge, running across the trkck, in the stting- ^ ers, under the rails ; that was cut ; the rod is about 1 i inch routid iron ; it jis broken off close ; think the loeomotivo or tender must have struck the lat- ».:tice-work iiext Dundas ; think the engine would clear out the beams as it j|w«2nt alpng, daiAagii^g the Jatticer, and then caiTy down the dtti's ; th6 IfttiliciSs are broken higher up on the Dundas side than oh the otter, ther^foi^ I ihti^ -«kVbofrd -Sidge,' '9646-0 To such wo "IW^, FbcQ runnfngfi the wheel that We have no »ve no general Ir traiqs at full ro diyectTy in ; |er thought the river oti the for two yeftlM nr years} the ». 3 freljtrfat oh breftk on the rrfence ; never rivers consider ^* ; a re^lftr nethfng abotKt y, ten minute dmingi at nii«B k oh the rails g on the rail, n ; tbfe -faiat-k ail. I amai- d the switch; id ; have sc6b rail, but not track with a lose I observed , with all the on Tbu*fcday discern it; I UiB^h to makie ade the inark Ihe Off dirhdt- ■ t ejistdhi diVi- Woodstbfe'k; itdfioh btiild- Iways for 20 • wrong ; ex- accideftt ; it awftr6 of Ho in Hamihbn I accident ;-;- had b»en off conneitlng- positivtely ; engine had ecefitricrod I the stf^ng- nd iron ; it ack the lat- beams na It the latildls or^Xihm ^^'^<»d6''6rii&it'^d^'4m'firat; itiWktkf^Tie had stmek the dd<i8 61^ fUe ^dgiB, It mi|Kt aff^aWiBUve itt^t^led'^^r iiidiii^^ the idar^ H'Kii aotte~(^fove-|i^eiijiMc.)"' '""'" ■■"•'V' ^* - ^ -''"'' ";'! '"'^''- ':'"''"'"'':: '^'/'"^ To Mr. Richards.— I do spmetime? ti^jte a Jlfp^rt 6f bridges ioJ^^e^• g^neer ; expect the cfnef respohsipilit^ rests t^pqn me ; had the poijirge (^f such works as bridges ; ptanpcd abrifige at ' i&t'inisby, Mglan^, adrp^ the en- trance to th^ Crrini8|[)y Dock ; that Was a i^ilway'bnrmge, bat lib Idcdnio- tlvps t^in oHr It ; dori'tkr^ow of an efj^inie^r 'hayfug inspected' t^'aVbirtS^?; B^krched' the cord^ of the bHi^ge carefUlljr ftfter'tW et'^rdttrjf accfd^ntr ; Id^fea at the trestle work cftrefhlly, ^veftil times, 1h(ife thah' tert mIniri6^^ach'H&i4; ''8#eM* every bolt' was rif^t, tfnd tfaltt I saw Ho s|ilit in the' siding'; sdw no 'spl it at the splicing; there mightbe a 'Suji ehbck ; f^onld take ok)> tiotice of t^at ; would dot be certain Whether there was an did cheek or iiot;don?t .recollect any cbe(^ or split 'ainy where along the bridffe ; think the ends, are broken a short distance from the '' scar^" but I did UQt examine it closely, not so closely as I did in February. The Jury a<^ourned at half-past 11 o'clock, to me?t agfl^in on Monday, at 2, p.m. H^,.; j^t - ... Sixth t)(uj. — Monday, March 23. , ' -. * ' ' The Jury met ai the: City Hall at 2 o'clock p. m., and the p^ep^or^ti^ii^s lor raiung the submerged locomotive having been completed, proceeded,, i^ oompany with the members of the Ci,ty Counc;!, to tjhe bri(lge,,to yiewtthje ■ proceedings. Over a thousand persons were present, among whom, we;re t^e Hon. Mr. Killaly, Assistant Commissioner Board of Works, of Toronto, Jj. Clarke, Esq., Chief Engineer $tate of New Yprk, T. C. Keefer, .Es,q., CiiU Engineer, and members of the press from Toronto a,Ta,d, Hamiltq^. The locomotive was raised wit^h pullies ^nd deinrici^s on the ,tf>p of thje water and showed the forward truck wheel of the c^i^ine c^ the rig^t ai(^e broken off. From the posture of the engine as it lay on the bo^to^ of ,the .canal on its side, it seems quite impossible that the wheel was brolcen .bytjxe fall, everyting goes to show that the axle was broken^ either on the briclge or very near it, and the breaking of the bjddge was from the concussion w^blph ensued. The bridge was tested with three heiavy English engines attache<j, and there was not the slightest vibration perceivable. It seemefl r.e^ar^jb^ Seventh Vdy.--Tuesaayy Narchzi. ^ ' At 2 o'clock, p. m., the Jury assembled at the Clity Hall; The first wit- ness examinjed was one of the surviving passengers. Ma. J. E. Clabb — was in the first car of the fatal train ; is a dry goods merchant in Hamilton ; was in the first car of the train, on the day of the ac- ieident ; felt a jerk and heard a whistle of the locomotive at the same t|me ; then felt a second jerk, and at the same time felt the car falling ; ^,at,ab9]^t three seats from the stove ; thought we were pretty njiuch near ti^e fc^idge ; all I remember of what happened in the car was one lotfd stream as we wejiit down ; could not say that any one got out ; had my child on my knice ; ,could not say in what way we were going down ; only felt as if I, had dropped down straight from some high place ; when the car began to go down i was^^in nvy seat, three seats from the stpve, and the next thing I remember was, -Ifelt myself in a heap of rubbish two seats from where the stove stood, and tow- ards the engine; Cbujd not say -Wrhat was the cause of the accident ; my opinion is that the locomotive was on the bridge when I heard the ilirst whis- tle till the time I felt the next shock was scarcely an instant, and then I'fMt we were falling down ; my opinion was that we were going ftiSter that time than we had ever gone before ; could not feayhow many miles an hour ^e -Were go£ag ; hadiiot prdvioMy to th% iaioilaebt (^r f^liW similar sdnsalidu ■nt k\ ■il\ .•? I'l; I 26 .in traTelling by a train ; felt no unpleasant sensadon befora I felt a jerk ; was not aware of anything being wrong till I felt the first jerk. When I be- oame conscious after the fall, I f^lt a stoye upon me, and at the same moment I felt for my child ; I looked along the car but could see no one ; half of my body was in water ; got out through one of the windows and felt something gfiTe way under me, which I then believed to be the bodies of those thrown to the end of the car ; could not see any seats, and do not know where they were ; saw Capt. Sutherland, Mr. Duffield StUd Adam Ferrie, the latter was three seats back of me ; Duffield sat one from the stove ; Capt Sutherland farther down in the oar ; that is all I know of the accident. To Mr. Richards — am of opinion the first jerk was when the engine fell and pulled the baggage car down, the second one was when that car snatched our car over ; before this, the cars had gone along qhite smooth ; if the loco- motive had been off the track, the train could not have run so smooth ; the reason of my thinking we were going fast was from my looking at objects through the window. .xwuhijn m !,u> i rtt xiy<'.\'.i yg mu .visf-t.i;; W. R. Marshall — I reside in tToodstock, am a dry goods merchant in that place ; was in the Toronto train on Thursday the 12th ; was in the last oar ; sat four seats back, on the side next the lake ; was looking out of the window and could see Hamilton, and the first feeling of a peculiar nature I felt, was an oscillation of the car, and fVom the time I felt that sensation fo the time I went over, was a very short time. The passengers were all very much alarmed, (and I also became much alarmed,) and were running about from place to place ; this was just before I heard the whistle that this oscilla- tion took place, and in half a minute we were down ; could not tell where, and from that time I cannot remember anything ; when the oscillation took place, and the passengers became alarmed, I requested them to keep still ; we were going very slow, about 5 or 6 miles an hour ; 1 am in the habit of travelling a good deal in the cars ; I judged we were coming to some place from the slackening of our speed ; it did not strike me that we were travelling fast ; thought we were going very easy ; it was shortly after feeling the os- cillation of the car that wo went down ; did not make an attempt to get out ; fell from one end of the car to the other ; did hot think that the locomotive was off the track. Anthony Sherwood — Is a civil engineer ; is at present engaged on the Buffalo, Brantford and Goderich Railroad, and has been engaged with Mr. Lock, G. E., at Southampton. Was also engaged on the Lancashire & Carlisle Railway as assistant engineer ; has been about a year on a Spanish railroad ; was engineer there ; came to Hamilton some 10 months ago : was engaged for a short time in the mechanical department of the G. W. R ; from seeing a train pass over that bridge, I made an examination ; calculated that it would bear about three times the strain that was ordinarily put upon railroad bridges ; merely measured the timber, but did not look as to the quality of the timber ; it was about nine months ago that I made this examination- and calculation. A written statement of the examination made by Mr. Sherwood, waathen read, • ' To Coroner — I have examined the renewed brir*;;. : there are a few more needle beams than are in the plan from which I have made that calculation ; the scarfs too are joined rather different in the new bridge, aod this would add to its strength. To a Juror— If the bridge had been planked it would have distributed the weight, but did not think a single plank would baye kept it from falling fhrongh, or it would have turned off through the lattice work. No wooden bridge coi the "Oxft To a way is to been knov them won To J a foot am a mark w oar woul gcratcb, To^ that was broken b : timber. may in f To J : pine is, p rod to oa needle I Iris cor which w( gcientitic of the bi could, n( bridge m less defl( rapidly, the brok know he The first wit Ani vilengi sippi RJ Virginii this mc and of 1 follows Fr the brie rived a 8000 Ibi y 1 find t each 6( Tl of the but to length gives counte sistan( strong II were i ^ bloo( •ft I felt a jerk ; •k. When I be- tie same moment one; half of my i felt something 9f those thrown low where they , the latter was pt Sutherland I the engine fell at oar snatched th ; if the loco- Jo smooth ; the dng at objects T .^ •as merchant in was in the last )king out of the culiar nature I lat sensation to 8 were all very '■ running about hat this oscilta- not tell where, oscillation took a to keep still ; in the habit of ; to some place were travelling feeling the os- apt to get out ; the locomotive ingaged on the faged with Mr. ihire & Carlisle inish railroad ; : was engaged ; from seeing ilated that it upon railroad the quality of imination- and ood, was then re a few more calculation ; id this would ^e distributed fc from falling No wooden 27 bridge could have stood the amount of impact of Bach ft shock as the fall of the ••Oxford." To a Juryman — Have seen them composed of wood and iron ) the asual * way is to put iron girders and plank across, but in such cases the trains have been known to break through upon such a train. . The only sure way to avoid , them would be to stop the engine and go over slow. To Mr. Richards — By the term impact I mean a striking ; 18 tons falling a foot and going at 7 miles, would produce a force ot 380 tons-^it would leave ' a mark when it would so fall ; it would cut the beams right through ; a freight ' car would strike with a force of 190 tons or one half; it would not make a scratch, but would cut or crush right through them. To Mr. Richards— I did not observe any brashy timber there, nor any* that was decayed. I saw some that were cracked, but thought they may have ' broken by the blow. The lattices may have been made of medium qualities of ' timber. A bridge of this kind is not likely to be impaired in three years, it may in five years. To Mr. Beecher — The calculation as to the relative strength of oak and , pine is, pine 90 to 112. Canadian oak and common pine, seasoned, is prefer- i red to oak. I do not think it would have been desirable to use oak for those needle beams. In England it is calculated 125 tons would break a bridge. Iris considered 2^8 sufficient. Tha Desjardin bridge I calculate 4i to 1, which would give 'di above required strength. I have looked at this bridge scientitically. I know nothing of the state of the timber. From what I know of the bridge, that weight as a dead weight could not have broken it. It it could, no bridge in the world is safe. Mr. Brunell has said that where a short bridge was dangerous he would rather go over quick than slow. There was less deflection when the trial was made yesterday, when the trains went over , rapidly, than when taken over slowly. I consider the accident occurred from the broken wheel. Had the engine come up whole, I should be at a loss to know how the bridge had broken. The Jury adjourned at six o'clock to meet again at eight o'clock. The first witness examined upon their re-assembling was Andbew Talcott. who said — I reside in Cincinnati, Ohio, and am a ci- vil engineer. I am Chief engineer and superintendent of the Ohio and Missis- sippi Railroad. 1 was, before that, on the Richmond and Danville railroad, Virginia, aS chief engineer for eight years. I have been in Hamilton since this morning. I have made an examination of the fragments of the bridge and of the engine. I have drawn up a paper embodying my views. It is as follows : — From this examination I am of opinion there was no lack of strength in the bridge for the sate transit of the heaviest trains. This conclusion is ar- rived at from a calculation of the strength of the transits ; for assuming but 8000 lbs per square inch for the tensile strength of the timbers on the bridge, 1 find the lower chords should bear a load of 272 tons, the main tension braces each 60 tons each, and the counter braces each about SOi tons gross. r The greatest weight that would belbrought on the bridge b; coupling two of the Company's heaviest engines, it is believed, could not exceed 72 tons ; but to get this weight upon the bridge it must be distributed over its entire length, and consequently be equally borne by the main four braces, which gives a load of 18 tons, which is only 3-lOths of the nominal strength ; the counter braces being 8 in number, and each afibrding about one-balf the re- sistance of the main braces, are loaded in about the same ratio of their.. strengths. ' It might be shown that the upper chord floor beams, and track stringers, were as strong in proportion, and consequently, that the structure was capa- ble of bearing over three times the weight of any train that could be put up- // !' ..¥ n i iiii OQ iU whiob leftves aslarj^a marg^ for casnaliticia ^niill be foandin a yeify greaii ^rbportlon of tl6 railrbad bridges in the XTnited States. I thought proper to state what load the bridge would carry, because I flad in the miiid of fhe|rtiblio hn impressloti that this bridge had hot safttbient strength to bear an ordinary train. My examihation on the groiind showed ctearly, to my mind, that the cause of the addldent Vras the breaking of the ude, and displacement of a wheel before the engine totiohed the bridge. i ^ This estimate , Is calculated on taking the thickness of the chords at their weakest point-fallowing tor the bolt holes and scarfing, although that is not the point at which ther^ is the greatest tension. 'To Mr. Richards.— if 136 tons were pat on the centre of the bridge, it would bear it ; if distributed, the bridge would bear 272 tons. That is the strength ottbe chprdiB-p-aot the flopf beams : have assumed the , truss to be 17 feet in heJl«^t*tW length of th^ bridge 72 feet ; took the minimum section of the tiin^r ; tb,e bolt^ dp notrediice the tensile str^qgtb in greater proportion th,an that oftb^ t(m)|>er cutaway ; a piecQ of. timber .12 inches broad» with a 4 inch boit'hole in the centre is stronger than an eight inch piece, as to its power to withstand a train ; near the splice was not the weakest part, because it was not in the centre ; if the bridge is shorter than 1 assumed, it is stronger than I calculiated. I exau^inpd the axle Ox the engine ; found the fracture smooth- ed down, as if it had run some distance ia that state ; have seen an engine on tbq track tbatj made no deeper impression than tho^e on the rail ; my impres- sion on examining th6 timbers was, that the cowcatcher had pitched forward and cut th6m ; tbe( IdcomotivQ would have cut through everything it touched. To Mr. Beecher. — My whole life has been passed in engineering; was educated at West Point ; was for 18 years a military engineer — and for 20 years a civil engineer ; saw nbtbing in the timbers to cause the accident ; have no doubt in my own mind, and t«here can be none in that of any well informed man as to the cause, of the accident ; some tlnjie last winter a " How'' bridge, with an ar6h, in tbe'IhdianapoUs and Cincinnati railroad, was cut through by a car running otf the tr&ck ; don't know a single bridge in America that w6^1u stand when ^uch a force of impact should come in contact with it ; am sure the axle was not broken by a fallr-lt is nOt quite fres^i but a little smoothed by friction. If the ties of the bridge bad l^en made of oak, it would not have Btrenjgthened it, in fact I tbjnk pine was better. ' , ■• -, < . ' . ^ ' To Mr. Elchards. — 1 saw no decayed timbers. ' ... Winter here n&rriati^d'a.case in wbich a wh^ej had run for miles, aft^r the axle had brokien in the jdurn^ and beam rubbed quite smpoth. To a Juror.— It taijeht be better for the switch to be a little further away from the bridge, if piracticiible. To another Juror.— It is not certain, by any ipeans, that the defect could have been discovered If the train had stopped, before coming to the bridge. William Gabrick sworn, said— I am. a carpenter; served a 5 years' ap- prenticeship, ttbout 18 years ago, and have been employed as a carpenter ever Binc6 ; am in the employ of the Great W;e,stern as foreman in repairing bridges and cnlveris ; have been foren^ftn of the' repairs of the Desjardln bridge j put 12 needle beams into the bridge in August last : that was, ' * extra," not repairs: aftpr the accident in [^^bruary last, I put in 17 beams ; 11 had been broken, and 6 others chljppfe^ j ' bbly one of the braces was broken ; that was on the Hamilton side oftheCAnal, and was repaired ; many of the bolts in the lattice- work were loose ; Wasin the iSfrst passenger car when it went dowp ; was at thfe frodt, four or five ^Bitsft-om the end^ on the lake'^idej the first, thmg I kn^ tt^at was Wrong, after the whistle blew, was the c^r taking two jerks aheUd ; looked out' of the end window, and saw the end of the masonry on the Dundaa side ; had got on my feet.to Jook: thought ,th« engine wasat the end ^th^bridge ; Thet^ wa^Mu Ve,i;y;^^^^^ be^eep the two "jerks,: eat ddWii of t^e^afct VfrhwlMm^ daf ti^ &e car went^oirft over %, ibul^, 29i foand in a Is. 2, because I . ot Bdfffcient siinol showed iMtibgof the ] bridge, ords at their that J8 not idge, it would the streoglh be 17 feet in ition of the proportion load, with a 4 I to its power ecause it was Jtronger than ture smooth- aa engine oh ; my impres- ched forward g it touched, leeripg ,• was —and for 20 cident ;have vaM informed low" bridge, it through by :a that wbnid I it ; am sure ble smoothed uld not have r miles, af^ter bh. 'urtheraway defect could he bridge. 5 years' ap- u-penterever iring bridges bridge ^ put not repairs; een brolcen, was 00 the I the lattice- ^^ ; was ,at irat. thing! ig tnco jerks lonry on the s at th^ end I ; jerksj sat I- ment and turned » somerset, I think, end over end ; when tlu cv feU, I fouB^ myself in the water: wasnotmuph hurt Some men mi^y have fallen npon me ; can't say what happened during the turning of the cars : got opt tbrougb the window ; was hauled up with a rope, and w£ni into Tribat«'s house ) was not able to examine the track for eight days after. To Mr. Richards.— The timbers I replaced were mostly towardath^ Toronto side of the bridge ; the first one or two were not nuicn injuce4 ; eomfi m^j:e passed over by tne car wheels, and only chipped. The car wa^ cpptpletely Qn the bridge before it stopped ;a3 a general rule ; I examine the bc^lge,Qhc«) a: month ; at the Toronto end of the bridge there wa« one needle l>«<MnleM-J'')t'; whidi was injured by the February accident. To Mr. Bee Cher.— A good job was made of the bridge— it wasmi^eaa, strong as it was before ; the bridge was inspected again five qt aix.days aft^r that } the weight of the loconiotiv^ and train could not have t^rokon the bridge, keeping on the rails. The Jury then adjourned at 11 o'clock. n':.'fi -Ju.>^j«--vin£. * ,;, •< HimU- .■. n . r.4i .■',-'>/, Eighth Day. ^Wednesday, March 25. ^ ••' •';*'-•"■* "".''• Tbe Coroners and Jury met at the City Hall at 2 o'clock, p. m., anc^were to proceed to the Desjardin Canal to make a more thorough examination of the injuries the locomotive had received, but in the n^eantime information ar- rived that the chains by which the engine had been suspended ba4 given way, and that the << Ox/or J" was again submerged in the canal. It was. then ar- ranged that the examination of the swing-bridge, across the Welland Canal, built upon the same principle as the one atwbichthe unfprtunate catastrophe had occurred, be made. A special train having been placed at their disposal by the Railway Company, the Jury, in company with the membero of tbe Press, and several engineers, proceeded to Thorold to inspect tbe bridge. By such inspection it was believed they would be satisfied as to the strength of bridges so construcetd. The examination having been made^Uiejnryir^r. turned to Hamilton, and adjourned to 7 p. m., Thursday., ijKi.ifn Jiil^!i/ob*' "•'' Ninlh Day.— Thtirsday, March 2Q. i' 'f< 4^ • ;^-t'''''^'''-! The Jury met at 8 o'clock in the City Hall. Mb. Whipple of Albany was first examined ; he said, I am a civil en- gineer, and have been engaged in that occupation for 25 years ; I have devoted more attention to the subject of bridge building than to any other branch. I have been engaged in that business for 15 years ; have bridged the New York State Canals ; have built mostly iron bridges ; have built but few railway bridges; have built four or five for the New York and Erie railroad ; built tbe Desjardin bridge, aud the Welland Canal bridge ; have methods of calcu- lating the strength of bridges, different for each kind ot bridges ; generally proportion timbers according to their strength ; have examined tbe Dei^ardiu Canal Bridge since the accident, and have dravfu up a set of 8i|(^);einen^|^99- , cerning it ; these were as follows:—^ ...:,.<;:; -jJ..^ . .. , J'.'' ! « I have examined the drdw or swing bridge over the Desjardin Canad, on the Great Western Railway, with a view of ascertaining its ctrengtb and condition as to general safety, and fitness for the purpose for which it has been employed, as well as the cause and manner of the casualty, by which about forty feet of the lower part of the structure from the northerly end was broken out, as I am iutormed, oa the 12th instant, allowing a train consisting of a locomotive'witb its tender, a baggage and two passenger cars to Mdl from a height of iorty or fifty teet into the canal below. Not having had an oppor-) tunity of viewiug the scene of the catastrophe till about a week after, its occnr'> . rence, when considerable changes bad been made in the conditiou of Uiings, my judgment must necessarily be made up from a consideration of the nature of n)ftteri»lq, principles and propQj;tion employed in the xsoostruottOA of t^f , M ir I 1 I' i:.' .' •:/: f; I . I 96'^ bridge, and the condition and appearanc-. of the broken and unbroken parts of the Btructure, and other connected objects I have seen there since the acci- dent. The superstructure of the bridge was built by me for the Great Wes- tern Railway Company, in the vear 1853, and as I am informed and believe, has been in use from the time the section of the road on which it is located was first brought into use, till the time of the late accident. It woh constructed in accordance with a plan designed and arranged by me, at the instanc; of J. T. Clarke, E^., of the Great Western Railway — the instructions being to make the primary and paramount object to consist in the safety and sufficiency of the structure, as to strength, with as great a degree of attention to the case and convenience of working it as a draw-bridge as might be consistent with the more important consideration of strength and stability as a bridge for railroad purposes. The plan and specifications having been submitted and adopted, a contract had been entered into for the construction of the bridge, together with another of the same kind to cross the Welland Canal near Thorold, which was also built in the same season, and has been in use ever since the opening of that section of the road, a period of about three and a half years. Now, although th» fact that thone two bridges have sustained a heavy railroad traffic for be- tween three and four years, without exbibitiugindicationsof a want of stability can scarcely be regarded otherwise thim as strong evidence in favour of their fitness for their intended purpose, especially since they form two instances with like results, without any of an opposite character to balanuo or neutralize — still it is not in my estimation evidence sufficient to justify ti. conclusion that they are unexceptionable and fully reliable structures. Befoi'e I can be satis- fied as to the stability of a structure, I must not only know tliat it has endured a certain length of time, and been exposed to certain tests, but I must alsobave evidence that the materials contained in it, are not exposed to the action of forces to which similar materials have sometimes yielded. For instance, having from the best available evidence arrived at the con- clusion that a certain material is safe and reliable under a certain stress, and of doubtful reliability, under a great stress — it I find a structure in which that material is exposed to a stress that has been re yarded as of doubtful safety, I cannot affirm or have full confidence in such sttv.cture, because it has in one or any moderate number of instances, endured severe usage and trying tests. That structure is alone worthy of confidence which exhibits a quality of mate- rial and proportions of parts from which stability might be reasonably infer- red without the test of usage, and then if the best of usage sustains the deduc- tions of theory and calculations, we might fairly rely on the safety of such a work, with as much confidence as human afiairs are ever entitled to. I pro- pose to explain briefly the principles on which the bridge in question was planned and proportioned, to aid in the formation of a judgment as to its safe- ty and reasonable claims to confidence. The Irussess which constitute the ul- timate supporting power of the structure, are composed of upper and lower parallel and horizontal chords or stringers, connected by a system of diagonal pieces forming a lattice work between the chords, with no vertical pieces ex- cept at the end. This form of trussing (chords^ and diagonals without verti- cals) has been theoretically demonstrated, I think beyond reasonable dispute, to combine strength with lightness, to a greater degree than any other form in use, and consequently is the best adapted to the construction of a draw bridge. Having fixed on a form of trussing, the next thing was to manage the general proportion — i. e. the depth of truss, and the number and length of panels. The importance of tying and bracing the upper chords to preserve them on line, as well as to maintain the trussess in their proper vertical po- sition, required the trusses to be high enough to allow the upper work to clear the smoke pipes of locomotives ; and of such height as was sufficient to give the truss that rigidity Required to prevent sagging or drooping o£r the ends daring the swinging of the bridge upon its torn table, the adopted height of 81 about 18 feet natarally snggeeted itself. The lengtlis ct panela followed from the propriety of having the chords supported once in 8 or )0 feet, and it was readily decided, to form a panel of 16 feet over the turn table, with 8 pan^Os of about 9 feet for the longer, and 4 of the same length for the riiort- cr arm ; the lattice work being arranged as for two stretches of bridge — one running. from the turn table across the canal, and the other to the heel abut- ment on the land, to be loaded bh a counterpoise to the long arm of the bridge — the upper and lower chords being extended continuously across the turn table*to connect the two. The general arrangement of the truHS beit)g decided on, the next object for consideration was to determine suitable sizes and proportions for the several parts or pieces of which the trass waa fo be composed. This required a consideration of the strength of the material to be used in the several parts, with the kind and amount of stress to which each was liable to be subjected. White Pine, principally, is the timber used in the strnoture under consideration. The ability of this material to resist the force tending to break or destroy it, varies according to the manner in which the forces are applied. Experiments have shown that to break a piece of sound pine timber by tension, requires a force sometimes as great as ten or eleven thousand pounds to the square inch of cross section, and that it will very rarely yield to a force of less than five or six thousand. I have, therefore, adopted the rule that it is safe to employ white pine where its greatest le- gitimate stress or tension cannot exceed one thousand pounds to the square inch. The force required to crush pine in the direction of its fibres, is nut so great, ordinarily, as that required to pull it asunder — being 5 or 6 thousand pounds, or upwards, to the square inch. 1 have, therefore, concluded that, in very short pieces, it is safely reliable under a pressure from end to end of 1000 lbs to tlie square inch of section, or 500 lbs to the inch for pieces of lengths not exceeding eighteen or twenty times the least diameter. To a force pressing on pine timber in a direction perpendicular to its fibres, it will not yield injuriously with less than 250 lbs. to the square inch. If the pressure extend over the whole surface, and if the pressure extend to only a small part of the length and breadth of the timber, it may be increased without bad effects, to twice that amount ; for instance, a washer under the head or nut of a bolt, acting on pine, should cover two square inches for every 1000 lbs. of tension to which the bolt is liable, to prevent its being drawn injuriously into the wood. There are also some parts of a timber structure, which de- pend for stability on the power of the timber to resist cleavage ; for instance, in order to expose a piece of wood to a severe tensile strain, it is necessary to cut off a portion of its fibres,to form a heading for the tensile force to act against in a position reversed from the end. This heading should have a square inch for each 1000 Ibp. of force, in order to resist properly the pressure upon the ends of the severed fibres, and it must be at a suflBcient distance from the end to prevent the head being split and| thrust off. To produce this effect (of splitting,) on sound straight grained pine, requires a force of about 600 lbs. to the square inch of cleavage. Hence I conclude it to be safe to rely on such timber under a force of one hundred pounds to the inch, tending to produce cleavage in that manner. Consequently, I always take care that the heading have a distance from the end of the stick, at least equal to ten times the depth of heading. In case, however, of the heading or connexion being mo4e by a hole through the stick near the end, it requires two cleavages to forc>, out the part between the hole and the end, and the hole should be at a distance from the end at least five times as great as the diameter of the hole, and with the bearing on round pins or bolts, which press outward, to some extent, as well as toward the end, it is proper to give an extent beyond the hole, equal ' to about seven times the diameter of the pin. With these facts as the safe and reliable powers of the material to resist the action of the several kinds of force to which it ^may be exposed and ^«2 f*^4(*^^ 'MdAbltln^ fhe wveral parts of the bridge trtiss t^rtp^d to 1^6 ^tnK^. and the amount of tensile and thrust action to trhlbh ' eiich part' Ukay oe liable in the usage for which it is designed, careMly caloa- ' lited ai^ marked on the parts respectively, it was easy to proportion the par- ^.ttoaUr' parts and pieces of the structure so as to enable all to perform their ilanotions with about the same ease, safety and certainty, without lumbering .it with useless weight in unimportant parts, serving only to impair its conve- .'nienoe as a moveable structure, and exhaust a valuable portion of its sup- ^* porting power which otherwise might answer useful purposes. In the an- , ^exed dugram I have shewn the arrangement of the parts of the long arm of the trass, forming the span from the turn-table to the abutment across the •iqaaal ; and .oonaidering this as a simple span of the bridge truss, discopneoted ., with the heel-end of structure, and supposing it to be loaded with 12,000 lbs f 4o tiMib paimel, applied successively at the points a, b, c and d, to be equiva- nltatto a load of one net to the running foot on the whole bridge in addition ^to the weight of the stmctore, the elementary prinoiples of statistics enable 'ue readily to deduce the kind and amount of aetion which would thereby re- vBuU to eaoh'part respectively. These actions I have computed and marked in . ponndd on the lines of the diagram representing the respective parts, (negleet- ug small fractions) prefixing the positive sign to numbers denoting tension, 'and the 'negative sign to those denoting thrust or compression in the same, ' manner as iras done previously to the original proportionment of the structure ' under consideration. These preliminary expHannftions of the principles and '^jO^putktfons presented are correct as I feel woU assured they are, and ^Vh6u1d'aid greatly in enabling an intelligent judgment to be formed as to the ^titren^th and reliability of the bridge in qnestlon, a» far an i t regards the snp- ■porting'poWer'of the tmiises. I propose ilow to refer briefly to the part*) of 4he truss, add point oat the reasons whence I infer the snfflciency Of ea^h ^particular part for the labour required of of it, an well as the general safe'ty 'of, and sufflciency of, the structure as a whole. The bottom dhord in the cen- ^1M ismarked at a tension of 39,000 lbs for a distributed load of 72,000 lbs in iftddltiOn "to 24,000 Ibr assumed weight of structure— or a gross load of 9«,000 'tfbuHfllito a'truss. The cross section is 120 square inches, and allowing one 'nalftO'belbstat'the itilibiDgB, We have 60 available inches of unbroken flflres, tsitpable'bf SdStaliiing'biAfbre rupture at least ten times the maximum stress -{m^iiced by the greatest ordinary loads, and being 60 per cent, more section 'Dhan'lsTeqtiired'by the safe estimate of one square inch to each 1000 lbs. The ^top chords have the same section of 120 square inches, safe at 500 lbs to the Ittth, or at a thrust Of 60,000 lbs— being about ten per cent, more than the great- ebt thrust marked fbr the top chord on the diagram, which is 61,000 lbs. Ttie /dfagt^als fi Band S U are each marked about 17.000 lbs, and have a cross ^Bectlom available for tension, exceeding 24 square inches; being abont 40 per <Jtiiittnor©ihansaffety requires. They have also 17 square inches section of '6bres cut by the bolt holes, grving one square inch bearing of bolt surface ob 'Kho^Wlds'oflbtieS for each 1000 lbs of pressure, which amount of pressure the '^Obd 'can bear MShout danger of crushing. The next diagonal R D lias irtWtttlO "sqiiare iuehbs of out fibres for bearing, and 26 inches of uncut tibtviS'to SUMain 1,^000 lbs oftension upon the piece both in considerable excess. 'IMagcwialPPsiifrers' a tension of 7,345 lbs in ope condition of the load, viz : 'Wh^n the point V is' full loaded, and the point B unloaded. A thrust of 2,115 ? 'lbs '^ilh'B full Ibaded and F unloaded, and tension equal to the difference of ;thA'se numbers. Or 4,23a'lbs with both points loaded. This piece is single kt .'theuppier'landj'wjfth a section of about 9 inches of cut, and 12 inches of Uncut "fibres/'knd tneWwier end double, and composed of 2 pieces 3 J by 6 inches. — 'The' Isingle'uptier part lajiping between the dotible lower part, with two One , ihdh bolts'ihd a Witibh |)ln 'pi&&Eling thrOtfgh, giving 19^ sqbare inches 'bf 88 ■LlllMl : m whibh iyoaloa- the par- their [mbering « conve- its sup- the an- >ng arm iroBs the lopneoted 1,000 lbs equWa- addition 18 enable ereby re- larked in (neglect- tension, le same, itructure pies and are, and as to the stbe'snp- paftfl of y 6f eath ral safety 1 the een- 00 lbs in of 9(;,000 wing one len fiflres, mm stress e section lbs. The bs to the the great- lbs. Tlie 'e a oroDss it 40 per ectioii of rface ob !s*ure the R D lias of uncut le excess. )ad, viz : of 2,1 15 jrence of single kt of Uncut nchos.— two drie nches'^f bolt and pin, bearing in the single part of the splloe, with nearly the eam* at the upper end connection, and more at the lower, being considerably in excess throughout. The diagonal O is double, being composed of two 8| by A in. pieces. At the upper end, where it connects with its opposite C and the upper chord, the two pairs cross and lock with one another, I believe with bolts of one-fourth inch diameter, Icnving an uncut cross-section for each pair, equal to 12 square inches ; each pair of these diagonals (O O and C) BuiTer 4,230 lbs of tension and thrust alternately, according as either of the points G or C, is loaded singly, while with both those points full loaded, the tendency of the weight at one point just neutralizes that of the weight at the other point, leaving those diagonals ]|ithout action, except what is due to the weight of the structure itself. The next diagonal N H composed of 2 pieces, 8} by 6 inches, suffers 0,345 lbs. thrust, only 1621b. to the square inch, with D loaded, and N unloaded, a tension of 2,115 lbs with the load reversed, and a thrust of 4,230 lbs. with both these points full loaded, with the assumed load of 12,000 lbs. to each. The diagonal M I has a thrust of 8,460 lbs. on 80 square inches of cross section, or 218 lbs to the square inch, with bearing surface largely in excess at both ends. Diagonal L I, same sized pieces as the two last mentioned, has a thrust of 260 lbs to the square inch, being an aggregate of 10,125 lbs, with a large excess of bearing surface at the ends. In the end posts we have 77 square inches for a thrust of 27,000 lbs, or 1 inch to each 350 lbs ; and when we consider the free unsupported length of these posts, equal to some 31 times the least diameter, although it is fully within the limit of safety, there seems to be as small an excess of strength above the safe limit in these posts, as in any part of the whole truss, if they do not actually constitute the weakest part of the whole bridge. I have now alluded to each part of the truss in detail, and shown for the weakest f>art of each piece of timber an actual maximum stress under the greatest oad to which the structure is liable in any legitimate usage, in all cases less than one-sixth part of the actual breaking stress of that kind of timber of average quality, and in nearly all of tho pieces very conriderably less. It follows then, that if we were to assume a distributed load six times as great as was assumed above, to wit : six times 96,000 to the truss, equal 576 net tons to the two trusses, or 652 tons over and above the weight of superstruc- tion, calculation would show in no single piece of timber (in the trusses) a stress approaching by a considerable amount the actual breaking stress of the material as determined by careful and repeated experiment, I therefore conblude that the breaking of the two trusses by a fairly distributed load 650 net tons, acting by dead pressure, could not rv isonably be predicted, except by suppofdng a quality of material, considerably Inferior to the average qual- ity of its kind. If this conclusion be correct, and to me it seems unavoidable, the sufficiency of strength in the trusses is fully established. To break one of these 7 by 14 floor beams, by a weight on the track rails, would require 33 net tons, while the legitimate service required of them, before the inser- tion of the extr- was about 6 tons to each beam, or one-sixth of the breaking weight. This 1 1 might produce an objectionable deflection, but not an un- safe or an injurious strain. The bolts sustaining the beams are If in. iron, eontaining over one square inch of cross section, deducting the part cut away in joining the screw thread, are good for 10,000 lbs each, would be injured by twice that amount of fair stress, or broken with less than 60 or 60 thousand ^pounds. If, instead of the addition of extra beams, the originals had been replaced by large ones, in the same positions, the effect would have been bet- ter, as bringing the weight higher to the supported points of the lower chord, consequently diminishing the transverse stress thereon. From what pro- ceeds, it is abundantly evident to me, that the bridge over the Dei^ardin 94 n; I CftnU Wft8 not broken down by the simple pressure of the trafSc pcuning over it bearing fairly on the track rails ; and it is my decided opinion from the examinations I have made, and the facts and appearance I have witnessed nnoe m^ arrival at the bridge on the 20th instant, that the immediate cause of the disaster on the 12th instant, was the violent eollision of some part or parts of the locomotive attached to the ill-fated train with the timbers of the ill-fated bridge, either directly or through the medium of some interposed body. •^■1} .'.yi -V5f Hv' ^jo'' - ■• "(Signed) , ,v, v^ *;<.v 8. Whwplb." 'J [r -jiirilj^i^-- f*': '^ ; duoram. ...^ . : ..• lit;! '.Vf '»»J5> r!" Ti:"' .t :■''■ i,n^ ^ SRQPONMLK XXXXXXX> ABCDEFGH I .' ■ r -- < ' (■ ^''-' To Hr. Richards. — I did not estimate the breaking weight of the bridge. If 670 tons were distributed over the bridge, I would not say that it would not bear it. llie bridge, according to the estimate, would sustain 650 tons. but I do not think that the bridge would sustain that weight. My opinion is that the bridge would sustain a weight of between 400 and 600 tons. If the bridge were built according to the plan, it might sustain a weight of 570 tons — that is, if the computation were right. What I mean is, that if 570 tons were distributed, it would not produce a break in any part of the bridge. The bridge, if the material were good, would sustain a weight of 670 tons. To a Juror. — The structure, previous to the accident, would sustain ft weight of 400 tons. • ' ^'f To Mr. Richards. — I am not aware of any bridge built on the principle of the Desjardin bridge, except that over the Welland canal ; they are the only two in existence that I am aware of. To the Coroners.— I consider the timbers that I have seen of the broken bridge to have been of full medium quality when they were first put in 3 years ago; but of inferior qtjality now. Timber could hardly last so long in such wear and tear without deteriorating. I think that such timbers would require good attention after four or five years, owing to ihQ action of the weather on them. To Mr, Richards.— The bearing power of every 20 feet of the bridge, woald be something over 100 tons. It would take a weight of 500 tons to break the bridge at 24 feet distance from the land. In the old bridge I do not think there were any beams broken within the 24 first beams. I cannot ac- count for the breaking of the bridge. i To Mr. Gwynne.— The greatest weight that could be on the bridge at a time is about 72 tons, in the ordinary traffic. The object of my report is to show that the bridge could not have been broken by a dead weight. To a Juror. — The bridge would gi«re indications of decay before it became dange^rous. Owing to the abeence of experience, I cannot say poij&tiyely, but I think it would give indications of decay in six years. To another Juror. — I have known an instance of a similar bridge giving way after five years at the joints, but it was not so well protected by paint as the Decpardin canal bridge. To Mr Richards.— I saw some rather cross grained timber in the old farildge, but I did not see any decayed timber. To the Coroner.— The breaking of the needle beams in February would produce an effect according as the beams were broken. If the chords were materially iiyured, it would be perceptible. It is possible that suoh inJHries woi^<l Qpi bj^ yidble ; it is not probable however. -I ' one was ig over rrom the [itnefised \te cause part or of the Itcrposed ' ' • i • .1 " ■ *V bridge, t would dO tons, )inion is . If the t of 670 670 tons je. The ng. sustain iciple of the only } broken a 3 years ', in such I require ither on J bridge. tons to Ige I do nnot ac- Ige at a •rt is to efore it not say c years, giving )aint as the old r would Is were injuries 3»r. SiJfUBL SHiBP (dwofn) s^id— I am Superintendent of the Gar Department. My duties are various ; have had nothing to do with bridges previouB to this one ; went up to the bridge at the time of the February accident : thought some damage might arise, and I ex&mined the whole of it, although it was not my duty to do so ; did not detect any bad timber ; the timber taken at the time was good working timber — such as is generally used for such purposes. On the night of the accident, I in company with Mr. McAlpine, examinee! the rail, and we found an abrasion near the switch. X had no doubt at that time as to what caused the accident ; my opinion was that there was a wheel ott, and Mr. McAlpine was of the same opinion ; first thought it was the left hand wheel of the forward truck, but afterwards I thought it was the right hand wheel ; told Mr. Brydges I thought the cause of the accident was a wheel off the track ; am quite certain the two front wheels were off, and 1 feel certain that the whole of the wheels were off the track, when it got on the bridge. The witness then explained the way he supposed the bridge gave way. Mr. Coroner Bull stated that at the request of some of the parties con- cerned, the further examination of witnesses would be postponed till Saturday. Mr. Richards, Q. C, said that he was desiious of having the broken bridge re-arranged, in order that the jury might examine the indentations more carefiilly, but he thought this could not be done before Monday next. After some discussion, it was arranged that the jury should adjourn till Mon- day next, at 3 o'clock, and then proceed to examine the old bridge and lo- comotive, which is to be raised up and fixed on a scow. Tenth Day, — Monday, March 30. The jury met at 3 o'clock, p. m., and proceeded to the scene of the late disaster to examine more thoroughly the state of the locomotive, which had been again raised and placed in a scow for that purpose. After spending two or three hours in the examination, tlie Inquest acyoumed till half-past three on Tuesday. , . , , Eleventh Day, — Tuesday, March 31. . ,. yi« i>:.\ jeM*.t) The Jury met at half-past three o'clock. The first witness exlamined, was William Jenkins, who deposed — I am foreman of the locomotive de- partment at Toronto ; am placed there to see that engines, before they go out, are in proper working order. I examined the engine "Oxford" on t£e . afternoon of the 12th of March. It appeared to me to be in proper working order. We examine all the working parts of engines before they leave To- ronto ; they are examined every time they come in ; think that engine has been on the Toronto branch for 12 months ; she had been on the main line previously ; the engine <*Oxford" had been under repair in the shops bat a short time before the accident ; she had only run 147 miles since being re- paired ; the accident was on the second day after she again commenced run- ning. GxoROB Forsyth deposed — I am general foreman of the locomotive shop at Hamilton ; the "Oxford" was brought in for repairs to the shop here-~ (Books were here produced which stated the condition of the engine when Drought into the shop. The pilot wanted repairing — ^both pistons examining — and the eccentric rod, driving and trailing wheels, guage taps — tires— &o. required attention.) Burufield made that report ; the right-hand driving- wheel tire burst, and then the engineer made the report as to the generttl stato of the engine ; most of the repairs spoken of were material, but the only reason the engine was brought to the shop, is that the wheel tire was broken ; fair wear and tear caused that damage ; she was in the shop from Jan. 20tli to March 6th. (Books were here produced, whloh shewed that A,5,..«, ---•*._ St IH all these repairs had been executed, as well as several others.) I examined the engine personally before she left the shop ; she was in excellent, sound, working order ; had to examine a wheel of the ''Oxford's" tender — the right hand leading wheel — examined the wheels of the locomotive at the same time, but saw nothing wrong — no flaw or anything else ; the engine ran four trips to Copetown ; she took the express train to London and back ; she ran four times to Toronto and back, making in all 347 miles from the time she left the shop to the time she met with the accident ; we are very frequently called upon to make such repairs as we did to the "Oxford." She was an American engine ; don't think American engines require repairing more fre- quently than English ones ; after having had such a f rst-class repair, the engine would not come in again for nine months, except for slight matters^ such as tightening up piston rods, &c. . . '- To Mr. Richards — We examined the' axles, and looked to see in what condition the brasses were. The engine, so repaired, is as good as new for all practical purposes. To a Juror — The "Oxford " was a good engine — able to perform any fair work. To another Juror — There may have been a flaw in the axle ; there may be flaws so minute as to escape observation ; don't think there was a flaw in the axle when I looked at it ; think it was flawed before it broke ; should say decidedly it was flawed before the accident. To Another Juror — The fractured part is not rusted at the edges, per- haps because the oil preserved it. To another Jviror — The tests we apply to indicate the soundness of the axles, are the eye and the hammer. If we fancy there is any defect, we put the axle in the fire, that causes the flaw^to shew. If there were a flaw inside an axle, it would not show outside. To the Coroners — If there was a flaw inside, the hammer would not cause its detection ; have seen flaws commenced on the inside of axlee, but very rarely. To a Juror — I don't imagine the continued friction would make the iron harder. To Mr. Richards — The "Oxford" was in the shop on the 17th of Febru- ary, 1856 ; then she had a new set of tyres on the driving and trailing wheels. To a Juror — I think this is the first truck axle that has broken on the road ; engines are examined after every trip ; we see that the wheels are right and true to the guage. To the Coroners — The axles which were in the "Oxford" have run for the last 12 months ; can't say how long before ; my book only extends back to February 1st, 1856 ; when we remove the wheels, we remove the axles as well — but the same axles may do for new wheels. Alex. Braid testified — I am the locomotive superintendent of the Great Western Railway works, at Hamilton. I have only been there for 6 months, but I was superintendent before that in England ; have been fifteen years on railways — 6 years engaged in the manufacture of locomotives ; the repairs to the "Oxford" were well and substantially executed; can corroborate Mr. Forsyth's statement. My opinion as to the cause of the accident is, that the axle broke before coming to the switch. On passing the switch the left band wheel worked inward, and marked the ties ; when about entering the bridge, the whole of the engine ran off the rails, fell on them, and, swaying to the right, the bufier beam cut away the diagonals and so went to the bottom ; it is pdaible for the front wheels of the truck to be off the track, the hind wheeli 37 Imined |80und, right same In four |he ran le she jtuently ras an ke fre- the [atters, what ^ew for remaining on ; it is hardly pos^ble for the whole of the truck wke«li to be off the track, and the driving and trailing wheels to be on. (Diagrami of engine trucks, &c., were here produced.) I think the transverse stay of the truck of the engine fell on the rails and slid along them ; think there ftre in- dications on the ash-pan that it slid along the rails, and that, by keeping the engine from falling very far, prevented t o wheels from cutting deep into the ties ; was at the scene of the accident at about 5 minutes to 6 the same even- ing ; went to examine the marks on the rails, ties, &c., not more than half an hour afterwards ; saw wheel marks about four rods beyond the switch — be- tween the rails ; the wheel did not mount the rall<! again until it had pasMd between the switch rails, and bent one of them ; it shortly fell, and thence to the bridge, was so distinct that there was no mistaking it ; had no idea, at the time, that the mark was made by the truck wheel ; thought it might have been caused by that of the tender ; all the tie rods were marked ; observed but one broken ; have examined the broken axle ; there ii an appearance of a previous fracture, almost all the way round, about three eighths of an inch ; there is no means of ascertaining how old the fracture may have been ; it may have been broken a few minutes, or perhaps a day ; it would have been veiy difficult for the inspector at Toronto to have detected it, because of its posi- tion. To Mr. Richards — The forward truck wheels could not be far off without bringing off the others ; the flange could be off further than the breadth of the rail — about 5 inches ; if it were 10 inches off, it would certunly cause the others to come off. To a Juror. — There were a good many people around when I examined the truck ; the marks, however, were not obliterated. ' ' , '' ■ ; To Mr. Richards.— I cannot say how it is that I did not s^e marks made by the truck wheels on the right hand side, outside the track ; the iron which forms the fire-box is not veir strong, but it has a strong frame; if a ton weight were laid upon it, in nront, it would bear it is ; think about 16 tons must rest upon the driving and trailing wheels ; the ash pan alone would not prevent the wheels from striking the ties ; the rails would have marked the rivets of the ash pan ; it is possible that the indentation on the aahpan may have been done in the fall of the engine. G. J. Bbydqes (Managing Director of the Line). — No complaint has ever been made to me concerning any alledged defect in the strength of the bridge. Some time ago, an accident took place on the Gait branch, and I immediately gave orders to the engineer to examine all the bridges on the line, and if anything was necessary, to have it done. That is why the Des- jardin bridge had additional needle beams put in it. The switch was placed near the bridge, because the engineer thought it advisable that the trains to Toronto should use as small a part as possible of the main line. I am not at all prepared to say that the position to which the switch has been removed, further from the bridge, is at all less dangerous, because collisions may oc- cur between trains approaching from the two branches at one time— on curves and in cuttings — so that the engineer of one cannot see the other. The only objection I saw to the switch being so near the bridge, was a danger that the train might run off the rail there, and go into the canal. However, trains do not generally run many feet after going off the track. I recollect Mr. Sharpe's telling me that the axle would probably be found to be broken. Mr. MoAlpine is the engineer of the Eastern section of the line. Has been for nine or ten months. He has been in the Company's service for four years. I consider him a competent man. To Mr. Richards — I have heard no complaint of the switch. Mr. Street made no complaint about it to me. The Directors in this country have the V ■<.f4- I power to build bridges wJbenever they please. It has been the intention of the Directors to build a Inidge at St. Catharines for some time. The Direc- torsrhere have full power to incur any expense tor the ensuring of the safety of the line. Trains pass switches and junctions without stopping, unless sig- nalled to do so. The grade of the road near the scene of the accident is near- ly 46 feet to tiie mile. The grade on the bridge is about the same. The Directors have bad the power of spending money for a stone bridge at St. Catharines. I unhesitatingly contradict all rumors to the contrary. The whole of the receipts of the Company have been spent in this country, and a great deal more besides, as sent out fron time to time. That will go on until we consider the line complete. To a Juror. — It would be desirable to have a fixed bridge at the place.' The Directors would make it a double track bridge, and have an inde- pendent track for the main line, and also lor the Toronto branch. That would be done if the Directors had the power, to make a fixed bridge. All bridges would be dangerous if a train would run off the track on them. The reason why the law atout trains stopping before bridges wns repealed, as it concerns the De^ardin. bridge is, that the grade there is so heavy, that heavy trainscannotjtartafter stopping there. Trains have been obliged to come back to Hamilton and take a new start. Besides, when the navigation is closed, and the bridge spiked down, it is to all intents and purposes a fixed bridge, and there can be no reason why it should not be regarded as such. There was a difliculty both with passenger trains and freight trains. To another Juror. — ^If the axle had broken at the switch, and the switch had been where it is now, possibly the engineer might have discovered it, but the axle might break at any part of the line. The only reason why it should break at the bridge is on account of the curve, just before it. To Mr. Richards.— If the right hand wheel had been off the track, the presuQjptipn is that I might have seen the marks on the track. I did not see such marks. To Mr. Gwynne. — The Schenectady locomotive works, where the Oxford was made, are considered to be among the best in the United States. Iliave caused a number of them to be ordered, so high an opinion of them do I entertain. The foremen, &c., in our works are the best that we can get for money. On the question of adjournment, which was now moved, as all the evi- dence, except that of the engineer's, had been taken, Mr, Richards said he had no desire to delay the Jury ; but it was desirable that the broken wheel, and a portion of a rail which were in the canal, should be recovered, pre- vious to receiving the evidence of engineers. After considerable discussion, the Inquest was then adjourned to Friday afternoon, with the understanding that, were it possible, they should be specially summoned at an earlier day. •v! ^'^:n ,.;.. .;i!..., , Twelfth Day.-^Friday, April 3. ,. .... ' , ., i, live Jury met at three o'clock, p. h. The first witness examined was John L. MoAlpine— I am an engineer in the employ of the Great Western Railway ; was at the scene of the disaster immediately after the accident occurred. I have examined the bridge, and drawn up a report. The report was then read, as follows :^ ,, "Having made a careful examination of the Desjardin Canal swing bridge, as constructed previous to the recent calamitous accident of the 12th ult., I am enabled to give the following results as deduced from calculations made of the various strengths of the parts composing the structure. " I find the available cross section of the lower chords 120 square inches. , ^.ll rai ■ ■^:><if'5 :!^ ion of Direo- safety » sig- near- The at St. The and a itil we plaoe. inde- would All The as it heavy come tion is fixed :ded as freight track, I did ■ *• to thfl altimate tensile strength of which is 840,000 lbs. The greatest strain to which the bridge could be subjected, is that due to its own weight, together with two engines and a tender, being a distribnted load of about 100 tons, or equal to a load of 50 tons borne at the centre ; the ultimate strength of the chords to load being in the ratio of 7i to 1. ,,>, .,, , . ,,, , .; " The strain on the upper chords is equal in intensity to that on the lower chords, but it is one of compression or thrust, while the other is ten- sile ; the timbers forming the upper chords are the same in orose-sMtion as those in the lower chords, and their idtimate strength is as folly in elcess of the greatest load. " The tie braces each contain 42 square inches of cross-section ; those nearest the abutments are the heaviest taxed,they have each 25 square inch- es of ftvailablo fibres to resist tensile strain, and 17 square inehee for bolt surface; the extreme strength of one puris equal to 246,000 lbs., or 109 tons, their ultimate strength to load, being as 7 to 1 nearly. " The smaller braces in pairs, each one 6 x 34 inches, are in strength near- ly in proportion to the tie braces, and are consequently capable of per- forming an almost equal amount of work. Unlike the tie braces, the nature of the strain to which they are subjected is variable, they being either in a state of compression or tension according to the position of the load. '* The united strength of the floor beams is 650 tons, the p^eatest weight they had to bear 75 tons ; ultimate a^qng^ to Ipa^belpgag B , seven-tenths ""•'■• ,,-.r.-, .^'- <•-. .,,,tt,,, .^1 y,.,.-f:<l . u • ■ '.Tn /' flM "Finding In all the other parts of the structure ample capacity for the greatest strains to which they could have been liable, and making reasonable allowance for imperfections both in materials and workmanship, I am led to the conolnsion that the ultimate strength of the bridge for a distributed load could not have been less than 876 tons, or in the ratio of ultimate strength to greatest load as 8f to 1. ';-; " JoHH L. MoAlpim«, '" • "f "S" ''': "'!; .^ , { .r,^ Engineer^ JEaaiem Divition." (8iis/ned,) HauiiTOV, April 3, 1867. Examination resumed : It was about a quarter to 8 o'clock when I examined the Aiai^ on the ties. The marks appeared to me to have been made by the tmek wheel of the engine ; believes the engine to have been off the track. The bridge has been under my superintendence for 10 months. During this time I nave never beard any complaint from any source, in reference to the insufficiency of the bridge ; always considered it safe. TVhen the accident occurred in February last, I made a thorough examination of the bridge, and ordered the repairs to be made. None of the longitudinal timbers were then broken ; the end timber towards the lake was broken ; if was struck by a freight car. The chords were not ii^iii'ed in the least degree. There irere 17 ad- ditional needle beams put in in February, and 12 in July. ' To a Juror — Does not think the present bridge stronger than the old stractnre. An iron swing bridge would be more durable, but does not think it would be any stronger. To Coroner — If two or three inch planks were laid on the hridge on a level with the rail, it would not render the bridge safer. In that case should a locomotive run off the track, it would break the li^ttice work, and go oyer. c To Mr, Richards— Saw the marks inside the rail0| they were perfectly 40 ili ri Kfl freeh ; searched for marks outside the rails, but did not discover at:} ; there were eome marks inside the rails which were made in February ; saw some marks which he could not account for. Gbo. Lowb Rbid, (sworn) — Was Chief Engineer of the Great Western Railway ; I was at the scene of the accident at 10 o'clock on tha<f "veninjg ; made an examination of the bridge on the following day, and have drawn up • report. rPhe report was then read.] ; ■'■' '''U^;' ^"'^ j-rffrrrn; n.^iniod^ : oi^-. Examination resumed — I saw the marks on Che ties ; they were ne>,')^- made ; the marks are correctly represented on the plan drawn up by Mr. Mc- Alpine ; looked for marks on the west side of the rail, outside, but did not perceive any. To Mr. Richards — I saw other marks on the ties which were made on a previous occasion ; think the whole of the locomotive was off the track before it got on to the bridge ; marks may have been made outside the rail. The rail that wns taken omt of the water had an abrasion on its sur- face as if there had been a sliding motion of the wheel. The momentum of the train would affect the action of the bridge. If the train was going at 20 miles per hour, it would be much more likely to break the bridge than at 5 miles. The marks were made in a horozontal direction. I think the loco- motive was riding on the chords of the bridge. ^ To a Juror — There are degrees of safety in different bridges, but sup- posing a locomotive off the track, they are all on a par. Fbederiok Pbbston Rdbridge, sworn. — Am a civil engineer ; have been connected with Public Works for the last 15 years ; was instructed by the Assistant Commissioner of Public Works to examine the track and remains of the bridge, and report to the Government ; have drawn up a statement, which has l^en presented to the Public Works Department at Toronto — a eopyM which is herewith produced. The report was then read, which occupied a great length of time in reading, and concluded by reporting the bridge to have been in an unsound, nnsf^fe and dangerous condition, on and before the 12th of March, 1857. To the Coroner. — Had the weight of the engine (34 tons) been equally distributed over the needle beams, they would probably have sustained the en- gine if off the track, but the lower chords would have given way. The lower chords were weaker in proportion than the needle beams. If the needle beams were each equal to a breaking weight of 34 tons, it would of course take great ooiiuusfflon to break them. On account of the wear and tear, and the insuffi- ciency of the lower chords, I should think the present bridge would be unsafe twelve months hence. At present it may be safe: I shouldhave no hesitation in crossing over it now. The lower chords are much weakened by the bolts which pass through them. To a Juror — I do not approve of the principle of the swing bridge. Sup- posing the engine to have been proceeding at the rate of from 5 to 6 miles an hour, I could estimate the force of the blow to be 70 tons. Had the chords been strong enough, thinks that the bridge might have sustained a lo comotive if it fell nine inches ; thinks that the span is unnecessarily wide ; a swing bridge might be built there and would, no doubt, be sufficiently strong. There were two weak points in the bridge, which it is natural to suppose were the first to give. Does not think the engine broke the lattice work in the first place. The marks on the bridge do not justify that theory. Thinks the engine was 24 or 26 feet on the bridge before it went off the track. In descending, the engine might have struck against the lattice work, or perhaps the tender. Does not believe the front of the buffer beam struck the lattice work wb^re the red mark appears. In fftlling, it is probable that^the engine «111 ; there Lw some Western ivening ; jrawn up ne\:j'^- |Mr. Mc- did not Ude on a :k before its Bur- entum of ing at 20 laa at 6 the loco- but 8up- lave been Jd by the I remains tatement, )ronto — a )f time in unsound, 1867. 1 equally ed the en- Phe lower die beams ake great he iasuffi- be unsafe tiesitation the bolts Ige. Sup- ) miles an le chords ned a lo r wide ; a [y strong, suppose e work in . Thinks rack. In r perhaps le lattice iie engine roaM itrikft'MHae p<irtion of 4h» Tfood-work of the teidgo. aqd «M^flr Boue aehptnrtloleaof'pMni Off wood as is said tafaay» been found oft4uid- wider 'tbei4iat»o*<the4Miffer beam. , , V Opficb- of Pcblio- Works, r^ ,,,:, Toronto,' March 26> 1867, '^^ Ti' A.^B«0Ly,"E8q;j^ Seeretary. '" Sir,— I h4ve the honor to prtsent tb the Cdmrafssioneri o^f^liHi Wbfki the rest^lt of mv investigation, pursuant to instructions f^om th^' Hoiifb^^le AsflfstaiitCottm'reionei^, t6 visit the IbdaTity of the tecent kd Wfcldfent and rejibrt 0t>oA th^ fkcts wbich' tbei*^ present thfeniselves; t^ith tefWihcfe' tft^'the Six days in 'fexamftrfng eV^ry^ piortiori ' of the • W-oketi'tttrttertf^AfWifeaibr- taer bridge ,• having matnrely wirfgHed 6very 'circfamtrtfafBc0''<;^ndin^ t^lWtow Hnf mght upon the VMrigin of its fall,! submit withsom^ degt^ of OdiMdimoe, the letfnvietions wbidi atf least have not been hastily ibrmedtiponi'thisr'Ttry -pstinfUl' (subject. I" accept as a fact, 'What the raising ' of ' thtf Mgtne goes far ' to ' prove, " that a defective ^axle, showing iridiorftionaifof a Daw at the rtght hand wheel of the forward Iff uckfof^ the ^ ioco- ni6tivevh«id broken ilush offr with its bearings -on the liMlid^journal/«thb>^rst ' evidencb of which is Apparent near the switchj about 13B feet ^frowtdelll- ' feted briidge ;'tbe sharpnees of the curve at- this point/ on « ddSeendtng grade as I am informed of 49 feet, having caused the lefkwheel todrop-be^Kveen tbe^raile) of the Toronto and main Western line at the junotion, where the Finch no doubt not enly bent tbe Toronto rul and broke; the chair, but caus- ed all the abrasaon on the iron spikes and rods and some of tbe iieai;er indenta- tions on tbe hardwood sleepers which have been so mpch remarked i^pon. — There is but little question iu^ my* mind that tbe left-hand forward wheel -was first off, then on, and again off tbe rail on the !Pay side^ a^ circums^nce, which coupled with the flagging- ot tbe fore part of the engine frpm the loss * of its usual (support, would probably, by this time have excited the notice and alarm ot the engine driver, and induced him when too late to wHvrtler^n "breaks"; and would also account in some degree for any jolting^ or fibrnto- ry motion, more than ordinary, which some of . the witnesses have referred to. While conceding thus far this disturbance at 'the forward wheelf, lam fully of opinion tbe remaining wheels of the truck an^ the hind Wheels kept the rails on to the bridge up to the point the locomotive bad r'^^tidoed when violently thrown off. the track by the givjnK way ol'the bridge, Tjbere is not sufficient evidence that the engine was wholly off' th^'^i^ack in'tbe slfight single line of marks which has been so much scrutiplzed of Tate J^jLVey are neither heavily enough indented, noi- have ^nf -p^raNet^iniiirtts ou^^e 'rrlgbt side ever been noticed. Aforeover, had siicfi n^e/i'^^theufe&se' 'thfe gi«g»ne Wonld either have ploughed into tbe needle beams from th<^'toe df thif fc&dge, on the outside' 6t the right hand raiVof Woiild have sti-iict thd ^dfe tttHce bt«cinar full iii firbnt, hnd thus have gone bter i;he stdne'iilWttnent. Again, takinig the bther assumption,' tbatth'ebtiffe^' beiira'of'lh0"(?ii|ftje had torn away the liMttice bracing a few 'feet ftonnhfeioe ''of Ihe' bridge' ^'on iM rijirht hand; in'that thegrtpportcase of the l.lWer'char* Ifethi^ "flhittrbred, itskWlity as a portidriof a beiim, breaking 'With '22 'tdnf<?t«itihV'B<lVd* Wen - IttntanftVy'ttban^ed td one sinking rindet flve-and-a^half ten*, tAid'tbef ' en^ne must haVe pitoheh end dowtawirdf^ Without eVerrefcWhnig^ie^fhirfeft^tU^^n ' the *»ridgfef 'itfielf. ' ¥Vbm all the facts which 1 can bfin|f' tur'bftar, TH^xftn^fixe tfigine 'had reached it^ehtire l^gth on the btktge, '^bille^ tfad^f^ont %h«eli of ) th»fop#ftrd trtick> of'thd>46h€ervwdr«'<Gftill<yyver thifriffBOOry. >>-!Ai''beMire ^ ""-•/f' ) \a- •tated, from the loss of its nsa&l support forward on the leading whee^i, t%jr •Dgine, while still on the rails, would have an uneasy motion, which won1u< , tell disastrously on the tremulous platform of the frail bridge, and it n' j be from the unequal revolving or **foul{Dg" of the disengaged wheels, an ' the oscillating motion of the front part of the engine, a considerable concu^sive shock or succession of ahoeks. was imparted to the bridge-timbers, sufficient when brought to act upon weak portions of the chords or braces in assisting to precipitate its fall. There were two decidedly weaker parts of the structure on the right hand or Dnndas side near the centre of the platform spanning the canal, unequal to resist more than the ordinary stress of a passing train ; and it wanted but this or some similar imusual occurrence to bring about the catastrophe which ensued. I consider, therefore, the destruction of the bridge, in its recently trustworthy condition, was an event to be shortly looked for, since the un- sound, state of the materials of which it was composed convincingly proves that it had reached the point of danger. Every indication noticed upon the fractured remains of the bridge shows me that the platform gave way at about the intersection numbered XI. on the plan accompanying, and that at the right side towards Dundas, for the reasons above stated, namely, two weak and insufiSoient parts of the structure. The engine having reached about 26 feet in length of the bridge, was, from the subsiding of the platform at these points, suddenly jerked or pitched sideways and forward in the direction of its disengaged wheel, and the effect of this heavy body heeling over and shifting its centre of gravity at the same instant of time from the weight being so much above the rolling plane, would cause the wheels to slip inwards.foroing the rails from the spikes with them,striking the needlebeams, while the heavier parts of the engine caused it to turn in its descent until it rested nearly bottom upwards in the canal. Its diagonal direction, therefore, by the law offerees, was the result of the sinking of the timbers on one side opposed to the engine's direct onward motion at the same time. I humbly conceive the position which the submerged engine assumed as it appeared above water level upon raising, with the tackling poising it wholly from the one side, would create an impression that it fell on the left side, but this is contrary to all the e^dence which I can gather elsewhere ; 'the bent form of the rails, parallel with the above described path of descent, the peculiar marks of the smokepipe upon the side truss and its position thereon, the inward twisted form of the iron couplings to the rails as they resisted, before parting, the momentary thrust from the engine wheels pry- ' ing below, as if toppled over above ; these and other facts satisfy me as to the probable course of its descent. While all the wheels and portions of the en- gine on the left side appear sound and unbroken, the iron stay rod, the cow- catcher, the cylinder and other iron works on the right hand side are damaged or fractured ; further, the depth in which it embedded itself in the soft mud- dy bottom is clearly defined by an angular line across the boiler, &c. The re- mains of the bridge when I inspected it on Monday morning, the 15th of .March, presented the following aspect : — The platform or bottom, had been torn away bodily for over 40 feet of its length, leaving the side braces more or less injured, hanging to the top-chords ; the fallen timbers had that mor- ning been collected upon the* margin of the canal below, and, much to be re- gretted, had been separated and put entirely out of their relative places, leav- ing the evidences which they would have afforded, if undisturbed, the Fub- jeot of after coi^jecture and uncertai^^ty. Parties of mechanics were cutting away portions of the broken bridge preparatory to its speedy repair. The ' side chords upon which the whole locomotive train, in addition to the weight .-Tlfi'l WOUluT wonlu J be ' the \js\ve Iflacient sisting 43 the bridi^o timber8,(lepended,were fractured at the pointti where the section >f the timbers had been most weakened ; thus a rupture took place on both sides where the divisions are marked IX. upon the plan ; and where three 8^ inch iron bolts cut the fibre transversely ; ber., i ac, was the scarf joint of either stringer. No. X. where only t v^ ooits occurred,had resisted the shock, while at No. XI. again weakened by t ir^a ho ts, another fracture showed it- self on both sides ; between XI. and XII. the great force of the blow fell, as the lower chords evidenced by the spUnterai trj pnients, and portions being missing ; at No. XIII., where another soari was .'cund, ithad broken as in the former instances ; in fact, the whole testimony oi the shattered lower chords gave proof that these were unsafe portions o: tae bri dge. I next proceeded to examine the character of the timber, upoa wa.ch so much had been suspend- ed by two or three bolts at intervals, nine teet apart. This examination was by no means satisfactory ; whether fromcas perpetual jarring effects of pas- sing trains, or from previous ii^uriea wjicli £ hat heard it had undergone-^ one having occurred in the month of February |uat transpired — it struck me the vital elasticity of the timber had beooino impaired. I discovered heart- wood, cross-grain and unsound wood in these important string timbers, the pans in the vicinity of the bolts were blackened, crushed and impoverished, aud in the wind shakes, where moisture had entered, decay was at work. — From the chord on the Dundas side numbered IX. where one-eight of the sec- tion of the timber is worthless, I took a haadtul ot rotten wood, which, I can now produce. This, further weakened by a tKzart joint at the same place cor- responding with one on the opposite sida,gave little promise of security under the weight or heavy train passing. The priaciple ot construction resorted to would appear to be chiefly suspensory » The locomotive rests its whole weight upon the needle beams. These hang upon the chords or etringers, which in their turn are suspended by the lateral braces and upper chords. All the rigidity the bridge possesses is from thestidaesa ot the lateral braces connected at their intersections by side-bolts, and as this is affected or impaired by con- stant concussion, I find no conpensatory principle or arrangement for recover- ing rigidity or stiffness by any means of adjustment ; the whole platform then depends upon the strength and ability with which the bottom chords resist being torn asunder transversely, where intersected by iron bolts ; as a new or sound structure, the principle, upon investigatioa, may not be condemned as insufficient, as I shall presently show j but its durability, in my mind, is very unpromising, and cannot be relied on so favourably as other modes of bridge building which might be adduced. If moreover, the ensile strength of any of the supporting braces be found deficient in one or more points, the weakened beam below is still further untrustworthy, and such a disaster as that of the 12th of March was likely to be the result ; the reduced section of the lateral braces, at No. X. Dundas side, shews a deadened cross grained fibre, which a common place remark, " short as a carrot,'' so well illustrates, that I here insert it, and produce the parts themselves in corroboration ; its cohesive strength or power to resist being torn asunder in the direction of its length, I consider at this point to be nearly valueless ; and without seeking for further evidences of weakness and failure, 1 here point to these facts as a reason why the Desjardin Canal Bridge gave way on the side upon which these defects were discovered. The new timber, moreover, which had replaced that injured by the accident in February, was not of a choice description : some of it ap- peared, from its fracture, to shew like top-wood, or timber from the upper portion of the tree ; one beam especially I noted, where a long knot, in the vicinity of a bolt hole, shewed a rent with a short vertical fracture. It is, ot course, a safe assertion now that the bridge between its bearing points has been tested, almost as a new straQtorei with a weight of 70 or 80 tons, to say 44^w If ( 1 thtt tti«>bridM if BofflefwDtly itroug^ Ba/viagmad» < the cakalfttUhi tot Ati einmgih pmnm* to this teat being applkd, and mentioned the' result to 4he HdttoraMe AfMiatwit Gommlsgiooer »ii(l>other8.iI shall refer to the eetimatioa thenfinn Aod believed to be nearly correot^ that the breaking weight of the abo«««xteot>of bridge^ .say i72 teet, might be taken at /Thrkb uukdrbp ana FiraTiTWA/coKadHMlvrmlf:. borne, one third of which, or ,,117 tone, being tj^ei uealul^raetiBalaeuiuM of its strength; tp test it, <theretpr«^ with two, eni giyia widn iBie<tieodflr , . weiighlng together, 8a7.,76 tons, .^ad ,quite,,withi%thfli rimilflfaftfiiJt3(.wid..preqik9;(ion, as a sound piepa of op^/itrnctlonw The ba«jlf,',„ ofikifttOftkMikAiQitfVaii^Wot to asspAie the 8ide4at^e|ng,f^i4 cbprdp as » i}g^ ,, beaiiBflf «4uAh(«igi4i^7 ^b<^d misgivings, an4, which the a^cident^as de^u>^T,.. 8ttirtlfae*i^^We,pne,; since a beam, 72 f^et lopg by J19 feet dee|), woaM ;, ^<MM^^nR%,i|m9H ^grfater breaking weight, but., X spugh)^ the elemepts of Btrffiffth r(5jiigt|ie,w^pl^i W i*8 part; and what each portion Qf Jower chords, niiie>fb«iXQAg4>fvfi«9n.tbeu^ suspending supports was calculated to beiir ; thI|||^V I tieV<N^4^^ tnO'lru^ ^e^sure of the strength, of the Desjar^in GanaTBrlSge/" Ha^J^cj k)W/Y^ JphQirof been equal to the shock) the needle beams would alone' ha^Drqi^^^r6|}gb. leaving the lower attached to the upp^r chords and traces whtt^t^i)i^|[4<^ii)^ chords present a croM-section of 12 in. by'5 m., two of such being connected together by transverse bolts on each side, thes9 D9^lH^<^ c^ch in diameter, reduce the section (not to mention the' BCQ^f8)rto A bekm 7^ inches in depth by 10 inches broad, and nine feet in ' • ledgtli ; whjcd, for the two chords, one on each side of the bridge, under an • uniTQihn 16^; l^opld break with a weight of 45 tons, or 22 tonnfor each singly.' A ^p^yy Ibcbmotive of 36 tons would press upon or occnpy two of these pofr tioQ^ of ptaifloirm, or eighteen feet in length, and as it is shewnthat'lt would ' ■ req^ulre ^8 tbns to br^ak (his extent, taking one third of the latter as the safie '■ pra;^cii| stri^ag^h, this, therefore, would be a severe test inasinuoh«» 37 1" exj^p^ds 29), lor doijistant and daily use. For a 28 ton engioe, wlrnhL have '-• aestttted the Oxford to have been, the weight would just fall Within the limits. > of ^fc'e't>racttcfiV'?kr®°?!'P» *"^ might be confldently run over while the-bridge-<-' conti^|iied( syi^Q^* Foftfh!) heaviest class engines, thdreforoy it would be desir-^^ ab'^{ip (n<^e^^ thd' ^ep^h of the lower chords say dto 14 inches instead of 12^ ^'■ an^Ift^oi'ppmion that when the needle beams were replaced after the iajary > in TeWnairj by others, the lower chords likewise shonid have been renewed, ' an^TiH^ tlai|]Ngr8 of a; debper scantling. In adding thra additional two inches ■ '' '* " '"t^e' lotirep chords, while only increasing the weight of material would have beeaadeoided'' or the ability of sustaining^ - Under these more favmv-- U] ;c't«uiiii^t^n^^^ lower chords would have been strong enough to have •-• ted.ihe j^h(K;l( of an engine dropping nine inches on to the' timbers, even- i abl haQ[,|ie, ^eedle' beaag^s given Way — or as 117 plus 71s=94 tons. Several forcea^^ we^0'pjr6^g^t.iiitq suction at the destruction of the bridge. If, 'as 1 atntofopmedjo- th% ^i^gkiil ^^ A de^en4in^ grade of 50 feet per mile, or say I in > 150, thei" efr(|(^c\wOuM;be i^l-d lions fotce of gravity to an engine of 28 tens entering on ^i_ • r_ jif^id iij^-' -# x«^g bridge. In addition to its transve — "^ --•--_._- 8 eflFect of torsion or twisting, fVom t^e braces on the left or Bay mde to irhe^e^pobix^i^ted >«(^itlithe lower chords at their weaker section th^' m<jj(^tii<l .^pljine of the bridge7 In addition to"i ts transverse and eohesive' j Btr|dM^, ih^jre'^^s also the efiTect of torsion or twisting, fVom the engine being- cain^^ t^e braces on the left or Bay mde to lM*eak ehort voff whMe'coijnebtea '^itt the lo ' there was also' Ju^Jhe}( serl(^6,.injiLi;y before alluded to, from the blows or conous8ion;i 'gpu^ offtake (^er^njged \^heels and broken axle, which wheels I -find weigb.q 0qdt ^tu linX^dbrgd and eighty pounds, pioducing the effect of a falling 4 ' y th^ firefi^ de^iniciive force of which there is not aufidently positive > - ' ''•^^W^til%ed;^ dUgh, therefore it is, and miut remain, a sul^t <tf nayite^iuid nnotc^A. 45^1. fer >itr ., imaCkm. .. log (*«! H e ^Mti*,,,, lepts of chords, BrlagS - d ^lone' d trtlces if 12 In. chride, tion the' J feet in • Oder an^' singly.' flepoFr t would > the safe '' Ih 8» 87^1 (' t'I'hav«i>^ he limit i abridge ^ - le desiiv <i I of 12^ a siojaiTtvi* »n«weayj< > 4acfae»^<:^ lateriiUr^i ieoided''-)^ tainiog^c e fatmv^'v 9 have VI 8, even J. I 1 forces I o formed, 't 50, theui 'ing on~^ shesivojsi r being' J ort off. J as also- »ussionji [weigh .! falling 4 j^ s / i»j Mi In/ I.N Ijr« M to the real, decided came of the accident to the bridge, itself, yet n is In my mind no uncortuioty as to the state and strength of this raili.t '/way flknicture to resist or euataiu any untoward shook ; acoording^, apoaik t thOQghlful consideration of the foregoing ciroumstanoes, I have come to the . i ^coaolusion to report the Dc&uardin Canal Swing Bridge to have been in an d unsound, impaired and dangerous condition on and before the 12tb of llareb , i last^i And! hare the honor to be, ^i ;. ■.'•< ,(•;' >:ni fiifjiJ* < -d 1 Yonr obedient, humble sorvant,f.i ♦•.''-.-' - liafijl »/' '.u- I ' <•.'•' ' i ■■■■■' F. P. RnsiBOi, , Assistant Engineer Publie Works.< P. 'S.-^The weight of the engine has in this Report been assumed at 28 tons';', it would appear that 24 tons is nearer the truth ; but takiMp tfaeifoMe* of gravity upon an incline ot 1 in 105, it may have pressed the <bri^e timbers wim aboat twenty-six tons. The accompanying plans, sketches and photographs, are referred to'M>^ illuBtFRting many of the foregoing remarks. . '':' "!."'*.' '.' Thwtemth Day— Saturday^ April Ath. n • ' .i-j/,' Th6' Jufy met at 2 o'clock, p.m. Before proceeding to their regular busi- ness, the jury were for some time engaged in the examination of a model of the bridge, and of a part of the track leading to it, as well as of a locomotive engine, constructed under Mr. Sharpe's direction, by a tew of the mechanics employe^ at the shops of the Great Western Railway. Mr. Rubidge was further examined. He said — I consider the bridge safe, but barely so, for a train going over on the rails. Of course, I consider that it was just in that condition that anything going wrong would bring about an accident. I believe that the bridge was in a dangerous condition, . and, at any moment it might yiold and give way. To a Juror — The weakest parts of the bridge are where the defective parts were dispuvered, (pointing to the model.) Here (No 8.) was a defect in the chord— ;One-elghth of it was Injured. Here (No 10) was another weak point. Thfe braces were evidently broken with a very light stress. The whole of the , rigl^t hand side was weak. 'To Mr. Gwynne — I entered the Board of Public Works as a draughts- man i|,nd assistant engineer. I was employed in laying out the Beauharnois Caiiqd, enlarging the Lachine canal, &c. I acted in the field under Mr.. Reef- er, previous to my entering the Department I had been engaged under Mr. Ba&rd on the Welland canal, on that between the Bay of Quinte and Presque Islb,^ and on the railway near Cobourg. I first commenced in the country 30 years ago,;,^ a surveyor. I never had any training as a civil engineer beyond that which 30 years' experience gives. The most celebrated engineers , are, those who have commenced in this way. Th6 Coroners objected to further questions of this descriptioii. Witness continuing — Ten years ago I was the only resident engineer of the Board of Works. I had the superintendence and supervision of all. the bridge^ in Lower Canada, of which I have built probably more than any man besides^ I have no experience on railways besides in surveys. I do not pre- tend to much information as regards locomotives. I have been more con- nected with macadamized roads. These [produced] are the pieces of timber I coDiBider inferior. I do mean to say that these are inferior samples of tim- ber for ordinars bridges. I think a swing bridge might be constructed which . woi^d prevent an engine ^oing off the track, from going over or through the the bridge. I would Qot.msist on the impofisibility of <ui engiiie going^y^^.. I I! \ It id, however, not unlikeW that a tubular bridge might be made strong enoai to refltflt in both casefl. If the rails were on the top of a tubular bridge, of conree the engine would go over, if it went much to one Hide. I speak mere- ly from my Impreiwiona as regards tubular bridges. I do consider a swing bridge of timber might he made much stronger than the structure at the De^nrdin canal. I form my opinion as to the danger of going over the bridge in a car af- ter its construction, from a belief that the principle of the bridge is faulty. Not in any supposition that the weatlier would injure the timbers in that time — there is very little rigidity about the bridge. After 12 months I should look for injury to it. I am aware that there is a bridge over the Welland oanal bailt on the same principle. Mr. Gwvnne — If you found that sound and requiring no repair — having in the meantime had none, except in the bracing up of the bolts— should you conceive your opinion erroneous T Witness — I don't say that the Desjardin bridge was unsafe — I merely cal*.- culated that it would have been so, if theory is correct. Mr. Gwynne — Do you found your report merely on theory, in the face of ascertained practical results? Witness — Not at all. I compare my theory with results shewn on other bridges, much stronger than this. The nearer you approach rigidity in the construction of bridges, the nearer you attain perfection. The insertion of bolts in the Desjardin bridge is calculated to cause permanent injury to the bridge — sofc wood in contact with hard iron gets jarred. I think they support the lower chords, and do not contribute to the rigidity of the bridge. I do not confess to arrive at any conclusion that because the Thorold bridge remains sound, therefore another must do so. To Mr. Richards — I have constructed some of the largest bridges in Low- er Canada. The principle of every bridge should be, that it should represent a rigid beam or plank on edge. In the Howe truss there is a provision for re- storing rigidity — the diagonals press end against end. There are tension rods on the top, by screwing which up, the rigidity of the bridge can be entirely restored. In the De^ardin bridge there is no such provision. The tensile strength of the upper chords and lattices is greater than that of the lower chords. The shock given in February last would be very likely to iigure the fibres of the timl^rs. Certainly .9 masts of a vessel striking it would do so. To Mr. Richards — I consider the De^ardin bridge, in principle, like a succession of bridges, 9 feet in length — not as a single rigid beam at all. The end of the first needle beam, the body of which we did not find, was perfectly rotten. I think the first six or seven of the others are placed in their proper relative positions in the bridge as r^onstructed on the beach. There are none of those near the Toronto end broken through. The tenth [from the Toronto end] is missing. Only one of the 8 before it is Aractnred. More of these are marked outside the right hand rail. It does not appear that any blow was given to these on the right hand side which caused the fall of the bridge. The rotten wood was taken from No 9 lattice. The rotten wood was near the bolt. To Mr. Gwynne — I believe that the marks on the lattice of the bridge were made by the tender. The marks on the cross ties I believe to have been made by the wheels of the engine coi^jointly with the rails. I think some of the marks on the ties, before coming to the bridge, were made by the left hand wheel. The engine is a loose, heavy body. 1 think it very likely that the right hand wheels of the locomotive made the marks on the ties between the rails, after it had canted over, and the rails were torn from the stringers, and thrown, together with wheels, inside the track stringers. <r >1j II : enoat •Idge, of ■ ik mere- >^ i ewiDg I at the u I am 47 Tbomis 0. Kxirea C. E. deposed— I Tiaited the bridge, and examined it >rding to the desire of the Goronora. Having examined both the bridge id traclc at intervals since the accident, I have prepared a report of my ex- aminations. [The report, which was lengthy, was then read. We give the concluding parti From the condition of the traclc, the wrecic of the bridge and train, led to the following conniderationR : — 1. The bent and abraded rail, and broken chair at the switch, and the scarred and broken switch rodH, indicate a derangement of some portion of the train when passing this point. 2. The stone coping of the abutment being higher than the switch rods, and the track sleepers, and more unyielding, would, if that derangement were in the engine truck, throw that truck off at the abutmemt, on feeling which the engineer most probably would immediately whistle on the brakes. 3. If the derangement was cansed by a failure of the right hand leading wheel of the engine truck, this truck would go off upon the right, and, after crossing the stone work, would be supported upon the right band rail, and elide upon the cross bar which carries tlie weight of the outvlde springa 4. If the buffer beam of the engine (which had been freshly painted about a week before the accident) the paint of which is rubbed off on the right hand-forward angle, and is similar in color to that upon the lattice, four feet fh>mthe end of the bridge, made that mark, the position of the truck would at this point have brought Ixtth the driving and trailiug wheels of the engine off the track. The drivers having no flange, would, with frozen ground, leave no perceptible mark upon the sleepers, and the trailing wheels, with nearly all the greater part of the weight on the truck and drivers, would make com- paratively slight indentations in the oak sleepers passed over. The distance between centres of the leading truck and the trailing wheels is 19 feet 4 inches, and at a point 18 feet back of the end of the bridge there is a consecutive line of marks on the ends of the sleepers outside of the right hand rail, commenc- ing close to the latter and diverging from it, with the single exception of the sleeper next but one to the stone work. The distance between this unmarked sleeper and the stone coping is 4 feet 6 inches. Before the trailing wheel reached this sleeper the driver would have mounted the coping, and may have thus carried the trailers over this unmarked sleeeper. 6. If the sooty mark on the right hand lattice, 24 feet from the end of the bridge, was made by the smoke stack, the engine truck must have at that time sunk 3 feet 6 inches below the grade of the rails, and her trailing wheels probably one foot, while no portion of the tender was then upon the bridge. If the smoke stack was detached, as the line of the mark is forward rs well as downward, the track must have been still further bac . If the buffer beam made the mark four feet from the end of the bridge, this beam would, with the engine travelling in that direction, have passed completely through the lattice suspenders at a point 11 feet from the end of the bridge, thus destroy- log it before the weight of the drivers and trailers had passed the face of the abutment. 6. If the engine truck were uninjured before falling, the effect of the fall has been not only to break an axle '* short off' but also to completely separate four other wrought iron connections in the stays and spring hangers ; while if the buffer beam painted the lattice, the missing right hand wheel would have been in contact with the chord and breaking latticf s before the sooty mark was made ; and, supposing the axle had previously been partially broken, the action of a continued moving force would account for the complete separation of the axle and the stays of the axle box. Such an action wouJ^ also account -■':!'^:^ ^- y'' ' -^^/ / '^ \ t'Hs :vi hf f ' ' fijsp tlw ]yhi« ApHftten fdrmed in the tmffet ' b««iB ' and 4h« ^akiNN* inl !' thread of tb«!cfcortl bolts. ^1? ' 7. t The outer ring df the axle fraetnre not being oxidisedt, lN)nld tndlllK'J that previous to its immersion in the water it had revolved long enoo|^ lir i '- tc^i-ft'aotfii'ed condition to become oiled, and thus proteloted ft<om rust. The^ t champered angle of the inside bearing box more strongly points to a contimied^^ "revolution of the wheel in contact wi% itforsome time after the aicte 'yielded, ^ and before it was completely separated. 8. The absence of any marks of th6 trttck Wheels 'outside of th^ right ^ 'hand>rail>to correspond with them on the inside of th^ !iame,taiay beacoOtSMtted for by the fact that the needle beams were here covered by the loosd 'flo<H*hg of thie foot path, -and upon the supposition that the broken right>haiKi lead- ing Wheel^.'detMhed^'by' thd iblownpofk -the stone worlr, would be doablefi^ tinder <>the trodt AiEinMi aind keep the fbtlowing one fVonl striklng.^the weight of the engine fltiU being principally <^iiihiik the vails and the truck inclined to the 'toft; ->al0e! that th4' buffer beam,^ in ooataot with the lattice^' • woiuld'^iMtaiii- these >■ wheels abo^e the level of the needle beams. 9. ' Th^absence of any traces of the driving or trailing' wheels upon* the needle beams, with the exception of the ftrst one, may be acooanted for \/f the ''■Dppotition^ Istv that the support on the right had been cut aiway before these T wheels 'left the stone-work^ and that in falling the needle beams kept a-keadof ) them ; and, 2(idly, since the needle beams were suspended by bolts passing up »ia thai open space of ten inches between the chords, which bolts were hung upon loos&4»{^ blocks, free to slide along the top of the chords to to theetxtent of each panel or space between the points of the lattice connection with the chord : and since there were three beams each seven inches wide in each space ■*<^hat alter these three beams were thus driven forward;, there would be an > open space wider than the diameter of the driver or trailers, throogh which these might drop until the ash-pan rested iipon the rail. 10. The fact that no marks were discovered outside of the right hand rail on the night of the 12th ultimo, may be accounted for from the consideration that these marks commence within twenty feet of the bridge, white the frosh !> marks within the rails extended from the switch fo the bridge, a distance of 130 feet. As many persons had been working near the bridge, rescuing the wounded &c, any fVesh marks on the short distance of 20 ^et outside the right hand rail might have beeiii.trampled out. or hidden f¥om the view, par- ticularly to persons examining at dusk or after dark — while those marks which were between the rails would be more readily traced from their greater extent in length, the trail once obtained at the switch being followed with compara- tive ease to the bridge. I am, therefore, led to the conclusion — ftom a consideration of the evi- deuces at the switch and on the track, and the subsequent appearance of the engine and the bridge— that from the failnre of the right hand wheel of the engine truck at or before reaching the switch, the left hand leading wheel Was let down inside the rail, and continued in that position [with the following wheels upon the rails] until it reached the coping of the abutment, which it struck, throwing the truck off to the right, and carrying the engine into the right hand truss, marking its path by the paint of the buffer beam, and the soot of the. smoke stack, and giving evidences of mutual contact by the painted splinters found oa the engine, and the oak fibres (of what I believe was the cowHsatcher beam) found on the chord bolt. wj i.^^-t y\\\ , ? wf » I have considered it preferable to investigate the causes of the disaste'r without reference to the sufficiency of the bridge as a structure, or estimates of its ultimate strength or breaking weight. This depends wholly upon an asBumed ^OMtant-for the tensile strength of white pine, which-quantity ifi de- I set its p andf been tosa tion chor( to st ner i Eeef Cant used land men( 0' *: J rega mar! mar the befo foui whei mar Hef turn f**"" es, on t ardi sert whi hav han oft rigl Iftl "di act no '<Il^ lid tnc loagb it ruat. The^-: i coBthmedf :1« 'yielded, ^ f thb right ^ acoOMted aci flo<>Htag baiKi lead- iblefAi tinder light of the tolheleft; ^aiii- these i npoD' the for by the tefore these >t a-head of passing up were hung I the extent a with the eaeh space ould be an lOgh which it hand rail Qsideration ;e the frosh distance of sscatng the tutside the view, par- arks which Iter extent I compara- of the evi- ' ince of <sbe heel of the wheel itas i following t, which it le into the 1, and the he painted i^e was the e disaster estimates r upon an tity Us de- / rl ^1^ from ejfperiment with specimens which can hardly be taken as a fair Rrfkgeof all the qualities which in practice are placed in the best wooden Tigea. In the fact of its having carried the^trafHc of the Great Western ^h^^ay for. three years — and of its having been swung repeatedly during the seaSoti of navigatioQ without requiring adjustment, [of which, indeed it is from its plan incapable,] the Jury have the best evidence of the vertical strength and stiflfness of the bridge. To what extent its original strength may have been impaired by time, use, aad the accident of February, it is impossible now to say ; but if I am correct in my belief' of the immediate cause of its destruc- tion on the i2th March, any wooden bridge with the roadway upon the lower chords wonld have shared a similar fate. •'f-'i» ».,* r.u ' •, T. C. Kbefeb. ?i)*i After the reading of the report, Mr. Keefer submitted a series of diagrams to show the position of the bridge and train after the accident ; and the man- ner in which the marks were made on the bridge. After some discussion^ the jury decided to a^oum till Monday, when Mr. Keefer would be further examined. Fourteenth Day, — Monday April Qth. The Jury met at 3 o'clock, p. m. Mr. KsEFBR was re-examined. • i •< f • . *. i ■t.i *i/ '! f .'ir-i V '4'<1 Mb. Ebbtkb stated, he commenced his profession in 1838 on the Erie Canal. In 1840 he had taken out a license as a Surveyor. But he had not used it, as he had been employed almost immediately afterwards on the Wel- land Canal. He had also been employed on the Ottawa, and had then com- mencf'd the survey of the Grand Trunk. He had been the Chief Engineer on 0^ -1 1'ailroad for a year, but did not consider he had very great experience as regards them. He had seen a train running off the track ; considered the marks on the track are those of a locomotive. He^had discovered the^outside marks on the track by measuring from those in the inside of the guage of the locomotive wheels ; having learned that nothing had run off the track before this accident on the right hand side, he presumed those which he found were made at that time. His reason for thinking that the three truck wheels were on the rails up to within a few feet of the bridge, was that the marks on the ties, from the switch to the bridge, were parallel with the rail. He thought the truck, when the wheel struck the coping, would naturally turn around towards the right. To Mr. Richards — The truck of the engine may have jumped up 6 inch- es, or a foot from the level of the rails. He had seen marks outside the rails on the right hand side of the track. He had measured them with Mr. Rich- ards and others. At that time Mr. Richards had not appeared willing to as- sert there were none I He saw no lateral blows on any of the first eight beams which had been sufficient to break them. He thought that the truck might have been slewed round afresh when it struck the lower chord on the right hand side — the engine meanwhile travelling in the presumed direction. CoROMBB Bull — ^Had the bridge broken by dead weight, would fractures of the lattices on the left ha^d side be so very different from those on the right? Mb. Kbefbr — That would depend on how the dead weight had acted.—- If the bridge had broken by dead weight some bolts would be found to have '<drawn" or some results would have appeared, different from those which actually were shewn. He had examined the lattices carefully^ and had seen no such signs. ' i'ffjjni «.v,:^ «wnT« 'mi w- ;/ 60 ■4 To a Juror. — Had he anticipated the accident, he would h^yriDi track run upon the the top of the bridge, instead of the bottom, bq'] engine could not go through — and if it ran over, probably the enamft'; , and perhaps baggage car would alone be precipitated into the can«M. ^|;L,^ examined the timber of the bridge. There were a few sticks jivof very gopdji.^ but the beams were as good as those generally used in tinijt>er st/aplture?. iSa '\'' thought the bridge wa-^ of a kind very wt^)! adaptjed Cojr a ^^W'Ji^t^^Pi ^^fj^PVPi. Iterbaps he would not have built it so. , ..^., i , ,. "..!.=. -' ^, !, ''.J7:'^ ■ To another Juror. — He thinks that in that place there was ueight s^IEk^^ eat to have built a bridge for a train to run over the top of it. VtMpn a XttAn ran on the top of a bridge, several additional stringers anal chori^^^i^tt ]w put in to strengthen it so as to resist almost any weight or strain. When the t^ack ran inside the tressel, there bad to be a couside^^V,<!|^^spii(C^ between the chords, to aUow of the passage of the engine and cars. ' ^ ,.^ Jambs C. Stkbkt, deposed—I am a Civil Engineer, and was, ai; o^ til|^, oonnected with the Hamilton and Toronto Brandb voad, as coiitractqr's #genl. I beard no complaint as to the Desjardin bridge, nox* was Ijt^fl? buAt^ess to iR' spect the bridge, as it is on the main line of the Great Western Railway. I have been perfectly acquainted with the bridge for four years, and oonctive "^ it capable of bearing up anv train running on the traek. I conceiri, boW-^ij^ ever, that the principle of its construction is had, incase of a trai.u running off' the track. I have seen^several swing bridges of iron, and one draw Jiiridge * of wood. I kuow of a bettor principle of construction than that ot tjie JDsejardia bridge. J have read Mr. Whipple's calculations, and I have reason to beUeVe them correct. I think, however, that a bridge might be made as light An!t e^ier than the De^'ardin canal bridge, to answer the same purpose. It is on < the London and South-Coast Railway, its construction was directed by Jdt Ras^ trick. I think the bridge' would be practically stronger, if the tnwfftep were 0^ less depth, and the lattices thicker, although the bridge so constfQoted would be theoietically weaker, the same quantity of timber behiguse^iti each case. Another defective principle in the construction of the bridge, !s thfi placing of the needle beams below the chords, instead of upon tbem, m in case of breaking, they act as powerful levers to break the chorda. d To Mr. Richaras^I should think if the bridge were injured by tkei Feb> mary accident the flaws would have been perceptible. I saw the bridge libe day after the February accident, also the day after the late accident. I look* ed, but merely in a cursory manner. I saw no ma>'k8 on the right hand sidtt of the track. To Mr. Gwynne — I did not examine carefully. If the hri^e was well repaired after the February accidenv, it would be as strong as ever. When a train runs off the track, the question as regards bridges, is only one ot degree of safety. None could he absolutely safe. I conceive that the truck only wa9 off the rails up to the moment of going down. The driving wheels may have been off, but I don't think the^ struck the bridge with much violence. If I found marks on the right hand side of the rails, corresponding as t^ the guage with those on the Inside of the track, I should imagine they were ijlade at the san\e time. ^'[ To the Coroners— I think the bridge would be safer if planked. I would flOt put more than a three-inch plank, so as just to allow the engine to go through, and then let its motion be impeded. I conceive that a successiQn of blows w«» giyen to the needle beams by the wheels, thus giving a tvibra- tocy motion to the whole structure whioh accelerated its ^l, To Air. iRiobArdfr—I think the truck must have bn^en off the T^ilf) at t^ moment qf onterwg the Iwidge. Tl»ei;e h Qo ip^ck of a vQry yipiieqt Ufnyf oa the cross ties found. ,,,^ -, ^ ;^ ^;,, \^^ f ^\^< .Jfii{>*' ■Hl'^f- .*i* iff> ^K ton, on 1 josj eXf- or I Vtxfa lane Joh: "Mrs Jam Bra OUi ^ Li^( Lew good and whei theii »ng] to tl ford tach past been bridj owin on tl leftf oausi crust toth mela derg casic good i M Fifteenth Day — Tuetday, April %th. T iQ a ttain f When 888 to in- Iway. I conctive ^ running ' iwiiri^ge ' DBejardin o beUeVo igbt an5 It is on r Mr Ras- i&ep were istfijcted fTUse^iti )ridge, !fl tbem, as thef Feb* ridgetiw I look- Lftact side :¥ ew .^ well Wben » * degree k only els may 'iolence« 3 to the re ijiade I would le to go soe8ri,QQ iVibra- pat U)ue s^. .fv «v .«*. ^^ % Jury tiiet at three o'clock, p. m. .!<.( .. ,. ; i the uoroners had briefly summed up the evidence «nd Htnted the pB, t^lje Jipry retired to consider their verdict. The fc^lowiog is the VERDICT OF THE JURY. ' ' Cp^^fjr^ OF WiKTWORTB. 1 "An Inquisition indented and taken for our 1 To JfU : / Sovereign Lady the Queen, at the city of Hamil- ton, in th^ 'county of Wentworth, the 13th day of March, 1857, and other 4kJ[^i (ftcoording to adjournment,) before H. B. 6aN and J. W. Rosebrugh, fe^quic^s, Coroners for the said County, for our Sovereign Lady the Queen^ on vieiW of the bodies of Donald Stuart, A, Grant, John Russell, Mrs. Beck, Jos^j^ Barr, Mrs. Doyle, James Gannon, Samuel Zimmerman, Thomas Be»- B^r . jTpiva 3harp, Rev. Alfred Booker, Erastus W. Green, Thomas Gorwell or I>oyIe, an Infiint daughter of Mi-s. Beck, John C. Henderson, Mrs. Jno. Resell, D^n^e^ Hecord, Edward Duffieid, Mahaly Clare, €apt. James Suther- land^ Adft.m jferrie, Geo, Darragb, James Roes, Jacob C. Snyder, Junior, John' Wilford, Alexander Burnfield, Mr. Bartcm Senior, Robert Crawford, 'Mrs. Sturdy, Hugh McSloy, Rev. Dr. Heise, Timothy Doyle, Patrick Doyle, Jaqoes Karkntss, Charles Brown, W. H. Kendall, Diana McFiggan, John Bradfield, a man unknown, John Morley, Elien Devine, Mary Devine, Geo. SA^loan, Jam«s Forbes, D. Curtis, D. Witter, Mrs. Bradfield, Ralph Wade, Oldin Campbell, G.eo. Bllaird, G. McDemie, Hugh McEvoy, Mary Jane Da- ids, James Major, MjcSp Ilowden and child, George Knight, Mr. Farr, and iM|^ji|P^. Stevenson, being then and there lying dead. "Upbn the oaths of Jambs McInvyre, Foreman, James Osborne, Joseph ^ Li^er, John Moore, John Galbraith, Levi Beemer, Robt. Roy, Jesse Nicker- ^ntoi?,*'5'homas B. Harris, Robt. Osborne, William G. Kerr, Alex. Hamilton, Lewis R, Corbey, Charles Magill, Horatio N. Case and James Cummings, good and lawful men of the said county, duly chosen, and who being then and there duly sworn, and charged to inquire for our said lady the Queen, when, where, how and after what manner the said persons aforesaid came to their deaths, do upon their oaths say that the said enumerated persons, be- ing passengers and servants of the Great Western Railway Company, came to their deaths in consequence of the Company's locomotive engine "Ox- ford " and tender, with a baggage car and two first class passenger cars at- tached, composing the train leaving Toronto for Hnmilton, at 10 minutes past four o'clock in the aitemoon of the twelfth day of March last, having been precipitated into the Desjardin Canal by the breaking of the swing- bridge over said canal. *'The Jurors aforesaid find that the immediate cause of the accident was owing to the breaking of the forward axle of the engine-truck close to the wheel on the right, at a point on the road not ascertained, in consequence of which the left forward wheel of the truck left the rail at or near the switch near the bridge, causing the locomotive when entering on the bridge to diverge to the right, crushing and tearing away its supports, and precipitating the whole train in- to the canal, and resulting in the calamity which forms the subject of this melancholy inquiry. "The Jurors further find that the locomotive ' Oxford' had recently un- dergone a thorough repair, and six days previously to this melancholy oc ca^n, according to the evidence, had turned out of the repair shop in a gcud and satisfactory condition. They likewise find that before leaving the ^^v. ^I.^l «*^'#*^w ' — — ••^-'^'^ ■" ' '**' 52 H ^' Toronto Station with the tri amined by a proper officer ai (ttr. the >^«' n this fatal track, the said rted by him to be in perfftq) I'^i. • hi U The Jurors aforesaid also find (hat the said iiriage oinr.tlie « cani4 w^ built of wood, and ooostructcd of sufficient utre^^tll jRor tluBOtMi^ yeyance of the traffic of the lifee s^ly and^curely over thefaid ta^dgo* •»<^' Tided: Ittiat the locomotive and -caii^lremalaed on the railwqf^traelk, ~ the salil bridge was not built of sufficient sti^ength to susta tKain inpase they should run off the track while passing ov^ tie Jurors are of opinion that the only certain wajpo^ fNtwirlSbf ist fli-jiimilar catastrophe, at the SMue place, would be t|ie inc^iL^r |^ leui bridge, tmt they would, therefore, strongly urge oi|^« :0of|H^ datt«e tE«r rame to be built forthwith, and also that thoi |[(mi Haes should have separate tracks over said strui rithfAwitches, which are always objectionable in 'illtoon would further recommend the renewal ot [t nuns to come to a dead stop before passing oftiuisani IridgfSl^VMfaviiig as they do, that the lamentable aodteit roiled htaOlilrfrecautionary measure riemained l^filiilf i«ru«f , U. B. B >^j ■■!# J. W. Ri JAMES JAME^'OSBORNB, JOSjirai LISTER, JOHN MOORE, V JOHN GALBREAITE, LEVI BEEMER, ROBERT ROY, JESSE NICKERSON, THOS. B. HAi^RIS, ROBE»I OSBOiSiE, WM. OrkERR, ALEX. HAMILTON, CHAS. IfAQILL, f HORATIO N.,.CASE, JAMEftVCUAfMINGS. i^TYRE, *^^ '^' f^' I V'' t^- r. m \ ji f -(.^ m