Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-06-20
HAGGERTY'S GOOD JUMP
Swam Ashore After Leaping
 Off the Brooklyn Bridge.
AWFUL RISK FOR A PINT OF BEER

days Suicide DId-The Man Was Drunk and Was Not Hurt a BIt-Glad that He ls an Irishman-NIuIrenin's Body Un-
 claimed.
 NEW YORK, June 20.-.A typical Cherry Hill tough, John J. Haggerty by name, who has passed his life in the Fourth ward bari ooms and the East river docks. jumped from the Brooklyn bridge to the river on the wager of pint of beer. He was not injured in the slightest way.
 Haggerty was drunk when he accom- plished the feat and was in the same con. dition when he landed in the Oak Street Police Station few minutes after his great leap.
 Haggerty is a short thick-set fellow of g years, whose pugpacious ways have won him the soubriquet in Cherry Hill
 society of ''Jack, the Dog" He has a wife and child, and by trade is a plumber. Haggerty was drunk Sunday afternoon W ith d few of his cronies he began to talk about Steve Brodie.
 ''Brodies no good;" said Haggerty.
 ''He done great deal more than you ever did. He jumped off the Brooklyn Bridg; understand" said Sullivan, one
 of the gang. nothing. III G0slU a urlnh ot beer," said Haggerty.
 Fletcher a pint of beer you don't' said Sullivan, and Haggerty took the bet. The two with another friend then ad-
 journed to neighboring bar-room. to dis
 cuss the bet and have some beer. As result, Haggerty was arraigned in the Tombs police court yesterday
 morning charged with being drunk and disorderly. He was released, however, T 1 Al he found his two friends, Sullivan and a man named Canty, awaiting him. They reminded him of his bet, and straghtway the party went to the Brooklyn Bridge, stop ping on the way occasionally to have beer. When they reached the bridge the party were in a fairly advanced stage of intoxi- cation.
 Haggerty told his friends to go down to the dock and watch him jump from the bridge. This they did. It was just 2 o'clock when Haggerty jumped aboard a truck crossing on Che south roadway of the bridge. He rode to the first tower, where he jumped off and ran for about 100 feet. He tore of his trousers and coat and threw them in the river. He then climbed upon the railing, clasped his hands over his head, and threw himself into space. He struck the water as straight as a welge and sank out of si sht. t.[l In less than
  vigorously for the New York shore. Word of the mans act had bsen tele- phoned to the New York end of the brid ge and policeman was sent down to the dock to arrest him. The policeman found Haggerty swimming about tine dock when he arrived at the pier. He soon had him out of the water. and took him at once to the Oak street Police Station. Haggerty talked rather rationally when taken out of the water, although it could be easily seen he was under the influence of liquor. Haggerty was not at all disturbed when put under arrest.
 ''What's this for?' he asked. "Did you want to commit suicdef' II asked the policemen.
 ''Suicidei Of course not" What did you want to jump for then F' "Oh, don't you think l can jump bridges2" he exclaimed. He was taken to the station, and a large crowd followed him. There he was examined by the DO | lice sergeant He said his name was John Joseph Haggerty, and that he was g years old on the Sth of this month. 'Where were yoI borng' was asked. "In Kerry, and thank God for it." "What's your tralep
 "pm plumber.
 "A bummerF' asked policeman. "No, l ain't no hummer. Pm married and the father of youngster. You can bet he's a boy" | By this time the mans sister, Maria, his brother, James, and his old mother | had arriv ed, and they al began to cry. Some of the women ill Jle crowd outside began to cry in sympathy, Haggerty talked freely. He was asked | if he had jumped because the man who
 had jumped Sunday had teen killed. He | said he had not even heard that the man
 had jumped
 "Did you jump for moneys' was asked.
 'Of course not"
 ''What did,you do it forF' | "Oh, don't you think l can jump
 bridges I'm an expert, | am Pve jumped higher bridges than tbat. Why, | seven years ago jumped ffom the Bata.
 via bridge up the State Why, I didn't \ think they would arrest me. l didn't
 want to commit suicide. Why, don't you
 think I'm an expert swimmer + l had
 thought they would arrest me IT have
 swam over to Brooklyn. l could do it
 easy" -
 'tHow did it feel when you were going | down through the airF'
 Il went down like feather. 1t didn't
 feel like anything at all" II "Did it hurt when you struck the
 waterg' "a sOf course not went under and tlen
 came up like feather. It didn't feel lie
 anything at all. :"
 Sunday suicide was the first ore iron
 the bridge in some time. Haggertt
 jumped at almost the very spot that Mul-
 renin jumped. Melrenip struck on the toI
 of the Clyde line pier. | Mulrenin was the first man who had
 jumped from the bridge in several months His body was still unclaimed in the morgut
 this morning and unless i.j is claimed soon | it will be inferred in Potters field.
 Rescued From a Rurning Mine. | T,,a An n