The daily gazette., 1878-02-13
A Hero OF the Metropolis Disas-l

ter.
Ths New York Herald eays:s Prom
inent ameng the heroes OF the Metro |
polls stands the humble and unpreten-
tions-looking Irishmap, Timothy
OBrien. By his own unaided exer-
tious he rescued frpm the breakers
and surf nearly fifty persons. limo
the is native of the county Limerick,
Ireland; 10 about thiry-tfour years Of
age, five feet, Six inches high, very
stout build. Hercules in strength,
and OF the greatest physical endur-
ance. This ~ the second wreck from
which he has escaped with his life, the
first being that OF the steamer Golden
Gate, which was lost of Acapulco, on
the Pacific coast In 1858. She was
burned to the waters edge, and
O'Brien was one of the twenty-five
persons who swan ashore, q dis
lance of seven miles. Soon after the
Metropolis struck and began to break
up, there was q general rush for the
rigging. OBrien secured position on
the mainmast, but when it became
apparent that the only chance for life
was to swim ashore he boldly jumped
from the rigging over the heads Of the
others and struck out for tho shore,
which he reached safely, the fifth man
from the wreck. Realizing the peril
Of his fellow-passepgers, O'Brien hast
ened over 20 the Csrrituck Club house,
three-quarters Of mile distant, " here
he procured a pair OF overalls and a
quantity of dry matches. He returned,
built several fires, after which began
the work which marks him as hero.
The sea was tull Of struggling victim.
buffeting with the breakers, and, one
by one, they were sinking. never te
rise again with life, when O'}rien 81
,, ten o'clock, plunged boldly in to thu
: rescue. One by one he brought thu
nearly exhausted and. In some instan
! ces, half dead victims ashore aht
placed them sin the hands of others a
the fires. He never halted until fiv'
O'Clock In the evening, when the las
survivor had reached the shore. Il
the seven hours during which he wa
!, thus engaged O'Brien bad saved near
ly fifty people, many of whom woul'
: have perished but for his great bold
q ness and manly aid.
> The last browning act of this gres
a feat of humanity was the. rescue Q
:. Mrs. Annie Huet, the only surviving
female Of the wreck. She was strug
: Cling feebly with the breakers, sur
a ported only by life-preserver, but s'
identity exhausted and about to sinl
A OBrien saw her awful position, an
q calling to young man name
n John Doherty TO help him, he starte
q through the surf for the dying womaI
a Twice the treacheroHs waves snatche
her from his friendly grasp, but at la
IA he caught her, and with Doherty's a
N sistance brought her ashore in an III
" conscious condition. She was aliv
s however, and was at once subjected
q the somewhat barbarous remedy {
Il being rolled upon barrel 10 get Il
10 salt wster out of her and then place
v upon a bed besides one of O'Brien
fires. In about thirty minutes 81
n awoke To find her husband beside he
l. He had washed ashore about fori
n yards below on the beach and VIII,
m dragged out his first exclamati'
was:
IN els my wife drowned?"
,e He was told she was saved, and, ovs
m joyed, was Carried to her side, whe
n. ne remained until she had opened b.
in eyes to realize that both had escape
Watery graves. .