Lichfield Mercury 27 May 1938

page 5, columns 1, 2, and 3.

GHASTLY RAILWAY TRAGEDY AT HADEMORE

 THREE PLATELAYERS MUTILATED BY TRAIN

“FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT”--CORONER

WHITTINGTON IN MOURNING

That it was a case of “familiarity breeds contempt” was the suggestion made at the inquest on the victims of one of the most ghastly railway tragedies ever experienced in Lichfield and District, when three platelayers were cut down and terribly mutilated by a passenger train on the main line of the L.M.S. Railway at Hademore Crossing, near Whittington, on Friday morning of last week.

The whole of the village of Whittington was shocked with the news early on Friday morning when it was known that three local men had been killed. The victims were Horace Henry Job Nightingale (39), of Sandcroft Cottages, Hademore Crossing; Ernest Roland Deakin (46), of Crossing House, Hademore; and Samuel Arthur Elson (53), of East Cottage, Whittington.

A Verdict of “Accidental Death” in each case was recorded at the inquest, when gruesome details of the tragedy—the bodies, arms, legs, and heads of the men being  strewn over the line for a distance of seventy yards—were given by  P.s. Woodward and other witnesses.

 Distressing scenes were witnessed at the massed funeral at St. Giles Church, Whittington, on Monday, when the whole of the village was in mourning, and in attendance at the church or graveside. The dead men were accorded a Legion funeral, the coffins being draped with the Union Jack, as they were members of the local Branch of the British Legion, Nightingale being the vice chairman.

THE INQUEST

The East Staffordshire Coroner, Mr. J. L. Auden, (Burton), conducted the enquiry with a jury, of which Mr. H. Moody was the foreman. Mr J. Else (Beale and Co. Birmingham) represented  the L.M. and S. Railway Co., Mr H. Hatton (organising secretary of the  National Union of Railwaymen) represented the relatives of the deceased, Nightingale, the driver of the passenger train involved and Sub Ganger Paling. Other railway officials present were Mr. R. E Bullough (District Engineer, Crewe) and Mr. M Saunders (District Controller, Nuneaton). Mr. Percy Collick, of the Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Drivers, represented the firemen of the two trains involved; Mr. G. Birch (Lichfield) represented Mrs. Elson; and Superintendent H. Jones represented the police.

When the inquest was opened on Friday afternoon for the purpose of identification, the body of Nightingale was identified by his wife, Winifred Ruth Nightingale, of Sandcroft Cottages, Hademore Crossing, who said her husband was 39 years of age and was a platelayer  employed by L.M.S. Railway.

Deakin was identified by his father, who said deceased was his eldest son, who lived at the Crossing House, Hademore. He was 46 years of age and was also a platelayer.

In Elson’s case, his wife, Mrs Mabel Margaret Elson, of East Cottage, Whittington, said deceased, a platelayer, was 53 years of age.

The inquest was then adjourned to Tuesday morning.

The accident was briefly outlined by the Coroner before the first witness was called on Tuesday morning. The three men, said Mr. Auden. In company with two other men, a sub-ganger and another platelayer were walking along the line, three of the five being killed.  He proposed to call one of the survivors, the sub-ganger.

Samuel Joseph Paling, of Hademore Crossing, a sub-ganger in the employ of the L. M. and S. Railway Co. . said that about 8.25 a.m. he left the signal box at Hademore Crossing with his gang. They had been waiting there for some ballast and other material to come up the line.

They were informed, however, that it was not coming, and therefore he received orders for the men to carry on with their ordinary work. To go to where their tools and work were they had to walk along a stretch of line towards Tamworth. About 400 yards from the signal-box in this direction there was a bridge.

WALKED IN "CESS"

Coroner: You and the other survivor were walking towards Tamworth on the up “cess”--- (a little safety path between the up line and the embankment) ---and the three deceased were following you? ---Yes.

Coroner: When you had gone about 300 yards you noticed the three behind had left the “cess” and had changed their position?--- No. I didn’t notice that until we reached the cabin.

You never actually knew they had crossed over from that “Cess” to the other line? ---No.

However, that is what we eventually proved did happen? ---Yes.

Paling, continuing, said he went on walking with Snape (the other platelayer) until they arrived at the cabin. On their journey from the signal-box they had seen two trains. A goods train came from behind them, and almost simultaneously another train came from the opposite direction. This was a local passenger train from Tamworth and it passed the goods train under the bridge.

The Coroner: A train all the men would have known about? ---Yes, it was the ordinary passenger train.

When the goods train passed you, did you go on walking along the “cess”? ---- Yes, straight to the cabin.

When did you first see the approaching passenger train---- the one that did the damage? ---- A few yards outside the bridge nearest Tamworth.

You heard it go by the same time as the “up” train? ---Yes.

Were you expecting it? --- No.  I hadn’t started work.

What sort of morning was it at 8.25? Good visibility or bad? ---- The wind was blowing across the railway from the north-east—from behind us.

Coroner: Was there much smoke or steam as the goods train passed you? --- I didn’t notice it.

If there had been you would have noticed it? --- No: It would have been blowing the opposite way.

Therefore we can take it that it wasn’t blowing down the line? ---Not on my side of the railway.

“WHAT HAS COME OFF THE GOODS TRAIN”?

When did you have the first idea there might be something wrong? --- I went to my cabin and drew my barrow out, looked through my tools and on turning round to my mate saw something on the line, and said “Oh Dear, what has come off the goods train?”

His mate came up and joined him then, and he didn’t know which one of them said “Where are the other three?”.

Paling added that he had been working as a sub-ganger for 25 years. There were no new hands in his gang. In fact they were all old hands and very used to that particular stretch of line, which they had known for a number of years.

The Coroner: I am going to ask you now, as an expert, have you any theories as to how this happened? --- I couldn’t say, sir

Can you think how it was they couldn’t see the train? --- No, I can’t.

It is as inexplicable to you as anybody else? ---Yes.

Do you know if they had been arguing about anything? --- Not at all: we had always been pleasant.

Even pleasant argument? --- No. sir, I never saw the men from the time we left the signal-box.

Was there anything to distract their attention. Aeroplanes, or anything? --- I never saw anything.

The Coroner said Paling was the nearest they had to an eye-witness, and for that reason was their chief witness, and he would like questions to be put to him by the various representatives.

Mr. Birch: Had either of the trains whistled as they passed you? ---- I didn’t hear any whistle, sir.

Is it customary for drivers of trains to whistle if they see men on the line? --- Yes.

HEARD  NO  WHISTLE

 And you didn’t hear any whistle? --- With the two trains passing under the bridge, and the sound coming through the bridge, I should not hear the whistle.

Do trains usually whistle when passing you on the line or if they see men ahead? --- Yes. They whistle if they see an obstruction or men in the way.

If there is any likelihood of men stepping into the rails. Is that part of their instructions? ---Yes.

Coroner: The driver and the fireman of the passenger train are going to swear on oath that they did whistle, so you wouldn’t like to contradict them? --- No.

In other words, you didn’t hear them whistle? --- Yes

Mr. Else: Is there a good view on the down line to where the men were walking? --- Two or three hundred yards view.

Mr. Hatton: How far from the bridge did you pick up the bodies of these three men?

Coroner: I am going to produce a plan drawn up by the police that will give you these details.

Mr. Hatton: From where you picked the bodies up, the view from the bridge would be practically nil? --- Yes it would.

And if the goods train entered the bridge hole first the steam and smoke would probably blow out, coming on to the down road? ---Yes. with the direction of the wind that morning.

So that visibility for these men to see the down train would probably only be fifty or sixty yards? --- Yes. That would be about it..

Coroner: As an expert expecting a goods train any moment, the signal having gone down and the goods train having gone the other way, wouldn’t a ganger get off the line into the “cess” instead of walking ahead? --- That is a question I couldn’t answer.

Coroner: I didn’t think you could. But that steam being there would be more of a warning than if there had been none? ---Yes.

Mr. Auden added that he had visited the scene of the accident that morning and one could see a train 420 yards away, from that point, according to the railway officials, although he would have thought the distance would have been more like 500 yards.

Further, one of the L.M.S. officials had shown him that it was easy to step out of the way of an express doing 80 m. p. h. at that spot.

Mr. Birch: The same applies to the drivers of the train. If gangers could have seen the train coming, the train drivers could have seen the gangers.

Coroner: And did, as they are going to tell you.

Mr. Else: It is 120 yards from the bridge to where they were hit.

Supt. Jones: The body was hit before the first point where it was picked up.

INSTRUCTIONS TO FACE TRAFFIC

Mr Hatton: You have instructions to face oncoming traffic when you are walking to a given spot on the railway? --- Yes. We always face oncoming traffic.

So that in these men crossing over from the up “cess” to the down “cess” they would be carrying that instruction out? --- Yes. they would be facing oncoming traffic.

Distressing details were  given by P.s. Woodward, of Whittington, who arrived there at 8.50 a.m. He was informed by the ganger of the platelayers that the bodies had not been moved since the accident. They were strewn about on the line and all cut up.

Sixty-seven yards on the Tamworth side of the crossing gate he found a boot in the down-line track. Then another thirteen yards further on, in the same direction, he found another boot. Sixty-three yards beyond this he found the arms, head and body of the man Deakin. This had been cut through the middle of the trunk. Five yards from this, in the six- foot way, was a portion of a pair of trousers.

The police sergeant gave other gruesome details in his statement of the finding of portions of Elson’s and Nightingale’s bodies. The distance between Elson’s body and the first portion of Deakin’s body was 70 yards, and all were very badly cut up and strewn over the track throughout that distance.

Mr. Hatton: It proved that the men had been knocked down much nearer that bridge  than the bodies were found? --- I shouldn’t say so. I should say Elson’s body was just hit on the head and leg. My theory is he just jumped out of the way and practically where he was hit.

Coroner: I think you can take the sergeant as being correct as to where they were first hit. The pieces of the bodies and their discovery were more gruesome than that. I don’t mind telling you, and a portion of one body went to Stafford station.

BODIES STREWN FOR 70 YARDS

 Sgt. Woodward : There was nothing between Elson’s body and the bridge, and that makes me think that was where he was first hit. The bits from practically all were strewn along the line from that point for 70 yards.

Joseph Townsend, of 42, Castle Street, Stafford, employed by the L.M.and S. Railway, said he was driving the 7.25 passenger train from Rugby to Stafford. He left Tamworth at 8.26. and when he was rounding the bend by the Fields Bridge, Hademore, at about 8.30. he met a goods train travelling in the opposite direction on the up-line.

The two engines passed almost under the bridge, the goods train coming out as he was going in. After the steam from both engines had cleared away, he could see about 100 yards ahead and saw 3 men walking towards him abreast.

Coroner: What did you see next? Did you see anything else? --- I rushed to the whistle and also applied the brake.

Coroner: I can prove you put the brakes on because you stopped in such a short time. Are you sure (editor’s note: misspelt shure in the original) you put the whistle on? --- We (the fireman and himself) both reached for the whistle.

“The next thing I saw,” continued Townsend, “was a hat coming up between the tender and the first coach of the train, and I knew the engine had hit someone.”

He pulled up as soon as possible, some 300 yards from the point of impact allowing the scene of the accident to pass out of sight of his passengers, coming to a standstill just as he reached the water trough. He got down from his engine, walked back to the signal- box to tell the ganger what had happened, when the ganger said to him “What is the matter, have you broken down?” He replied “No, I am afraid we have knocked somebody over.”

STEAM AND SMOKE OBSCURED VIEW

He went to the signal-box and gave his name there, and then went on with his journey. At the time of the accident he was travelling at about 50 m. p. h.  From what he found on the engine at Stafford he knew what had happened, for he found some clothing and parts of a body.

Mr. Hatton: Could you see anything before you came through the bridge hole? --- No. nothing.

Steam and smoke on the up-line had obscured any view? --- Yes. There was very little smoke but plenty of steam.

When you saw these three men did they appear to be walking towards the “cess”? They were in the four-foot way and apparently were trying to get to the “cess” on the down-road.  The next thing was my mate said “I saw one jump.”

Mr. Birch: Why did they “appear” to get to the “cess” You only saw them for a few moments? --- Because they seemed to go near to the “cess:”

You saw these men 100 yards away and you both sounded the whistle? --- Yes.

At that time did you see whether the whistle attracted their attention? --- They seemed to look up, but apparently they hadn’t time to get clear, or else they lost nerve just for the moment.

Coroner: Did they appear to be arguing? --- No. I don’t think so.

Coroner: I have thought of all sorts of theories, they weren’t trying to light their pipes with a match? --- I don’t think so.

They weren’t quarrelling? --- No.  They seemed practically abreast, near the left hand rail as if they were trying to get to their left.

Supt. Jones: It is an extraordinary thing to see  a railway engine kill three men like this.

CORONERS CONCLUSIONS

Addressing the jury, the Coroner said there was only one possible verdict, and that was “Accidental Death.” He had been shown over the track, had been taken down the line by special train, and he had come to the conclusion that if trains could be made foolproof, they had been. This was one of those ghastly affairs which was apparently no-one’s fault. There was no conceivable safety device which could have saved the men. Probably familiarity bred contempt--- they were old hands and it was a clear morning. Visibility, he would say, was about 500 yards. They would never know exactly how it happened. The accident had been a shock to the sub-ganger and the senior officials. If they considered the railway, or any of the officials should be exonerated they should say so. If they considered anyone to blame they should say so.  If they considered nothing could have been done to  prevent the accident, except that the men should have taken more care, they should say so.

After a brief retirement the jury returned a verdict of “Accidental death” with no blame attaching to anyone, and they thought that the driver of the train did all he possibly could under the circumstances.

Mr. Else on behalf of the L.M.S.,  Mr. Hatton, for the N.U.R., and Superintendent Jones, for the police, expressed sympathy for the relatives, and in endorsing these remarks the Coroner congratulated the police on the way they undertook one of the most gruesome jobs he had been involved in --- and he had seen thousands.

Whittington and District History Society is indebted to Philip James Wood for the transcription of this newspaper article.