The San Francisco call. [volume], December 16, 1901, Page 1, Image 1

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

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VOLUME XCI.— NO 16.
INVENTOR MARCONI DESCRIBES FOR THE CALL HIS SUCCESSFUL EXPERIMENTS
IN SIGNALING ACROSS THE ATLANTIC BY MEANS OF WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY
IMPRISONED
VICTIMS DIE
IN FLAMES
Fire Destroys Wrecked
Trains on Illinois
Central.
Eight Persons Perish and
Eleven Are Seriously
iDJured.
Hen Pinned Down Beneath the Debris
Are Incinerated Before They
Can Be Beached by
Bescuers.*
ROCEFORD. 111.. Dec. IS."— Failure on
the part of a conductor to obey orders Is
supposed to have been the cause ot a
head-end collision on the Illinois Central
Railroad, between Irene and Perryville,
early to-day. The two trains were east
bound passenger train No. 4 and a freight
train from Chicago going westward. Eight
people are dead or missing and eleven in
jured. The known dead are:
RICHARD ORMSBY. Chicago, engineer
of passenger train.
JAMES REARDOX. Freeport, fireman
of the passenger train.
ROBERT THOMPSON'. DubuQue, Amer
ican Express messenger.
J. W. FUNK, Chicago, brakeman of
passenger train.
DAVID BEHAX, Freeport. engineer of
freight.
EDTVARD CARET, Freeport, freight
fireman.
Missing and supposed to be dead: News
boy on passenger train, name unknown;
section foreman from Irene, name un
known.
The seriously Injured, so far as names
could be ascertained, are: H. G. Well
man, Chicago, right arm crashed at el
bow, taken to Rockford City Hospital,
condition critical; D. R. Abrredent, Chi
cago, cut and bruised; J. H. Qulnlan, pas
eenger conductor, cut and bruised,
crushed about the chest, taken to Rock
ford City Hospital, condition critical; W.
B. Keefe, Sioux City, Iowa, bead cut se
verely; Frank Stadleman, New Athens,
EL. cut about head and arms; Thomas
Hendrtcks, Xew Athens, cut and bruised
and hair ecorched off.
Crash Together at Full Speed.
The trains met In a slight bend fn the
track, both running at full speed. The
smoker, express and baggage cars were
piled on the locomotives, pinning down the
occupants. Only three of the half-dozen
persons in the baggage car escaped. The
others were penned in, and If not roasted
to death were" Instantly killed and their
bodies entirely consumed. All efforts of
the survivors to rescue the victims were
•unavailing. The flames drove them back
at every point
The temperature was 20 degrees below
zero and an Icy wind was blowing across
the prairie, the point where the wreck oc
fetirred, a shallow cut, affording no protec
tion. The Injured were without hats and
suffered terribly. By the united efforts of
the survivors the way ■ car was • pushed
back from the wreckage to escape the
flames and the injured were placed on the
bunks inside.
Two hours elapsed before any relief was
at hand. Then an engine arrived from the
east and pulled the way car to Irene,
three miles distant. A relief train from
Rockford arrired at the scene of the
wreck at 10:50 a. m. In the meantime the
Injured had been brought back from Irene
In the way car and wore transferred to
the relief train and brought to Rockford.
All are doins well except H. G. Wellman
of Chicago, who is In a critical condition.
Wrecking trains have been at work to
day and will have the tracks clear to
night. /Six bodies were recovered from the
debris but were charred beyond recogni
tion.
Willfully Disobey Orders.
CHICAGO, Dec. 15.— J. W. Higgins,
general superintendent of the Illinois
places the blame for the wreck
at Perryville. Ill-, on the conductor and
engineer of the freight train. They are
Continued on Page Two.
The San Francisco Call.
Works in Secret Un
til Triumph Is
Achieved.
ST. JOHN, N. F.,,Dec. 15.-I
saw Marconi to-day and in
formed him that the report
that wireless signals had been
received here direct from Eng-
. land had created a tremendous
sensation in New York and that cable"
experts and electricians were incredu
lous and thought the signals were sim
ply a result of atmospheric conditions.
In reply 'he said:
"I have no doubt that there will be a
good deal of criticism. Many will j find
the news difficult to believe. If I were
a novice at wireless telegraphy I might
possibly be misled by such things as
atmospheric disturbances.
"It is now five years since my discov-
SIGNALS ARE FLASHED ACROSS THE OCEAN
AT INTERVALS ON TWO SUGCESSI VE DA YS
WHEN zve left England, I arranged zvith operators at The Lizard, in Cornwall, tto send a signal consisting of thclcttcr "S" at a certain hour each day on receipt of a ca
ble from me that I was ready to receive the same. I cabled them on Wednesday that I zvas prepared and I received the signal e( S" seven times on Thursday, one signal
being very distinct, shozuing no doubt zuhatevcr as to the result. The signal was received twice on Friday. A then cabled again and on Saturday received a cablegram fromCorn
.wall, absolutely confirming wliat had taken place. The weather was unfavorable yesterday for further, tests or I believe zve would have, had the signals repeated.
I can quite understand that it is difficult to believe 'that, England [has communication direct zvith Nezvf ounaHand. and can well imagine the excitement it creates in cable
j circles. All I can say is that the nezvs is. true and events .will provi I my zvords.— From a statement inade by Sizno'r Marconi for The Call. ] ■ ". /
SAN FRANCISCO, MONDAY, DECEMBER 16, 1901.
*, ■■..■.;.■■- • -..- '■■•;,'..•'• ■■■■■ ■-:) ,'■ ■■ ■ ' : • ■•. ■ - ' : ■■■'■ ■• 4
INVENTOR OF WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY •AND-; VIEW OF A STATION.
cry was made that messages could be
carried "by electric currents, without
wires. I. am confident that Thursday's
tests were in no way affected , by . at
mospheric disturbances. You will re
member that in my first interview I said
that there were some matters in connec
tion with my visit t/S Newfoundland
which it was not desirable to make pub-
lie at present; , but I did not wish that
remark : reported at ..the time. These
long-distance tests are! what I "referred
to.'^I purposely refrained from making
any mention of the fact that I hoped to
receive a-signal right across the Atlan
tic, as I preferred to wait to' see if a
successful result. could first be obtained.
Particulars' about the large and impor-
tant stations in'Cornwall;and Cape Cod
have been kept secret for this same rea
son. ~ t
RECORDS DAILY SUCCESS.
"I may say that if I were working 0Y1
my own account alone these results
would .still be kept- secret,, but, after
thinking the matter over yesterday, I
concluded ".that it was my duty to my
Large Stations Are
to Be Erected lj
at Once.
shareholders to announce for. their ben
efit the successfulfissue of the long-dis
tance experiments.
"When we left England I- arranged
with operators at The Lizard, in Corn
wall," to send a signal consisting of the
letter 'S' at a certain hour each day on
the receipt of a cable from me that I
was ready to receive the same. I cabled
them on Wednesday that I was pre
pared and I received the signal 'S' seven
times on Thursday; one signal being
very distinct, showing no doubt what
ever, as . to the result. The ; signal . was
received twice on Friday. I then cabled
again and on Saturday received a cable-
Continued on Second Page.
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
VENEZUELAN
PORT WILL
BE SEIZED
Germany Sending Three
Warships to Coerce
American Cruiser "Will Foil ow
the Vineta to South •
America.
Berlin Government Resolves Upon a
Course to Enforce the Imme
diate Payment of Its
Claim.
Special Dispatch to Tho CalL
NORFOLK, Va., Dec. 15.—
Engineers of the German cruiser
Vineta, now here, say the vessel
will sail for Havana on Tuesdav
to meet three German warships.
Then they will go to seize a Ven
ezuelan port if the debt claim is
not paid. The American cruiser
Prairie will go with the Vineta
and will follow her when she sails
for Venezuela.
BERLIN, Dec. 15.— The re
port that diplomatic relations
between Germany and Vene
zuela have been broken off is
semi-officially denied.
WILL.EMSTAD, Island of Curacao, Dec.
15.— The Venezuelan General Victnte San
chez, who Is now here on his -way from
Maracaibo to Caracas, reports that 1000
Colombian Liberals, distantly supported
by 4000 Venezuelan troop3, captured the
Colombian seaport town of . Rio Hacha
(on the northwest coast of the Guijlra
peninsula) on December 10, after. Generals
Clodomlro Castillo and Clrio Ftpo, both
Venezuelans, had defeated 2000 Colombian
Conservative troops near Trelnta. (Tre
inta is about thirty 'miles soutiwest • of
Rio Hacha, in Colombian territory.).
TJribe-Uribe Directs Campaign.
General Rafael Uribe-Uribe is directing
this campaign from Maracaibo, 'where he
has obtained lukewarm Venezuelan sup
port. Upon learning of the Liberal vic
tory at Rio Hacha, General Urfbe-Uribe
immediately proceeded south to the pro
vince of Tachlra. The Colombian Con
servatives made an attempt to Intercept
Uribe-Uribe, but were foiled by means of
a deeoy armored train. .
: Uribe-Uribe's forces are now moving
along the Venezuelan-Colombian frontier.
Their objective. is said to be Bucur manga,
in Colombia, which, it has been. reported,
has been lost to the Colombian Govern
ment. The Liberals are also said', to have
taken possession of the; capital of the
Colombian district of Toiima.
Venezuela has renewed her w.ir meas
ures since. the rejection of ChLe's offer
of mediation. Her present position is
weakened by grave army frauds, impli
cating the eldest brother of President
Castro. The followers of Castro' 3 brother
are dwindling away.
Davila Accused of Murder.
The Venezuelan General Davila . has
been charged with wholesale thefts . of
cattle on the Guijlra penlnsjjla. Davila
Imprisoned the Mayor of Sinamalca, In the
Guijira. and caused the arrest of the ehief
of staff of General Vicente Sanchez. He
has been replaced in the Guijlra by Gen
eral Ollvarez. The charges against him
are brought by President Ferreia of, the
State of Zulia. Ferrera has resigned his
position in disgust. Davila has l>een for
mally accused of murder. It is said he U
to be made military commander } at Cara
cas. Maracaibo is restless and a popular
uprising is apprehended.
Heavy Earthquake at Manila.
MANILA. Dec. 15.— The, wors" earth
quake shpek since 1S68 was felt laere this
morning. One house was wrecked Ti'j
many bouses were damaged, ,