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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, ,