Show HORRIBLE ACCIDENT A most terrible fate overtook little seven year old annie liddell shortly after nine friday on her way from her home on fifth west street to the training school two minutes after bidding her sick mother goodbye she had been mangled to death on an the rails of the oregon shott short line liine at ahe the corner ot of first north and fourth west est streets the locomotive under which she was ground to atoms was switch engine no which was taking the passenger cars from the depot out to the north yard to be cleaned and put in order for the next trip the fatality was one of the most shocking and lamentable of his H kind that has ever occurred in this city the victim was a bright child daughter of mr and mrs alexander liddell who reside on fifth west street between first north and north temple streets for some time past her mother has haa had bad ad health and the child was kept at home occasionally to assist in such doMe domestic otle duties as she was able to perform as her parents were too poor to employ better assistance assip tance last week she abe was kept home all of the time and again yesterday afternoon she was a vivacious and intelligent little tot and when this morning she was informed that she could return to school her eyes lit up with wi th innocent glee at the thought of being able to resume her studies soon after the father went to his bis regular employment t as in the shops near by and a little later kissing her mother good morning she merrily left her home and met the rate fate indicated at this point the company has an aged watchman whose duty it is to signal the approach and departure of trains to all points according to the necessities of the occasion how old he is was not learned but he Is so aged and decrepit that he has of necessity to walk with a cane As to whether he be always gives warning to passing pedestrians is not known but it seems seema certain according to his own admissions that he did not do so in this case cam and that he did not see the little child as she was waa crossing the street eastward towards the training school neither do does he remember whether he be was on the fhe inside or the outside of the small house that gives him protection from the elements nor is it known whether the engineer observed the unfortunate victim but there were two witnesses in the crew of section hands who were employed at the intersection of the streets they were john greer and george MOBS mass and as soon as the engine had moved from the body they picked up the mangled and bleeding fragments frag meota from the rails and roadbed after this sickening task had been performed they carried the headless shapeless horrible me maas to the humble home of alp the parents scarce half a block away aw ay and am broke the news to the invalid mother of the frightful tale fate that had so overtaken her belov beloved chlo she became frantic with grief and spooned it was waa with difficulty that she was restored to con the lower part of the childs body was all that remained the head being literally ground into an unrecognizable pulp not one feature of identification i was left flesh blood brains hair and the little comb the child wore were all mixed up together all in all the corpse was mangled beyond description nothing like it has been witnessed here in years it was a sight so soul sickening as to impress the beholder with an instantaneous desire to have it shut hut out of view forever whether the responsibility for the tragic affair will be sifted to the bottom is unknown but it appears that the hapless victim was badly frightened when overtaken by the engine which crushed the life out of her tiny form not by the locomotive that killed her but by another switch engine which was cam cpm ing from an opposite direction on a parallel track and which was close upon her the section hands cannot remember whether the bells bell were rung or not and the old flagmann flag mans mind seems to be a perfect blank on the matter altogether it is a most deplorable plo rable affair sometime some time afterwards a 1 I news bews representative visited the tragic scene and also the saddened home of the parents the father in the meantime had returned and led the reporter into the front room of the house where the sickening mass lay in the folds of an old cloth upon the one table of the house A little later drs pinkerton and worthington appeared on the scene representing the short line and were immediately followed by justice of the peace nielsen and constable mcduff of the third precinct who took notes and names preparatory to a possible inquest t justice nielson however was very much averse to making an official inquiry saying that it woe was altogether unnecessary the cause of death he declared was too apparent and he expressed himself very strongly against the company employing so old and as he alleged incapable a flagman he criticized criticised it as nothing short of criminal negligence doctors pinkerton and worthington the justice and constable and the newspaper man again repaired aired to the spot where the child was killed and questioned the flagman and the two eye witnessed at that time the section hands were engaged with picks and shovels in the gruesome task of digging up and scraping over the blood stains and such auch tiny fragments of flesh bone brains and hair that had not been gathered up by the men who saw the terrible a accident |