Evening journal., 1898-07-23
CAPTAIN CHANDLER FREE.
DELAWARE MAN FOUND INNOCENT
OF MANSLAUGHTER.

COMMISSIONER DID NOT CON-
SIDER IFnAT TGIERE WAS sUF-
r'1CIENT EVIDENCE AGAINST
THE CAPTAIN AND THE CASE
WAS DISMISSED.
Philadelphia, July 23.-Captain Ebe
7. Chandler, of Frankford, Del, OF the
seagoing tug Sea King, charged with
gross negligence, and with being re-
sponsible for the deaths Of three men
who we've drowned off the Jersey
coast on April 10, when the barge II.
l.. Routh sunk while in tow, was given
final hearing before United States
Commissioner Craig yesterday and
was discharged from custody
A IF. Brown, sole survivor OF Routh's
crew Of four, was tn only witness
heard yesterday. He is now in Battery
A, Rhode Island Light Artillery, and
appeared in full uniform. He was en-
gineer on the Routh, and told an in
tereating story Of the accident, and OF
his subsequent rescue by the steamer
Miami, after clinging to the rigging Of
the sunken barge for eight hours.
Il came on deck at II o'clock" he
said, "just after they had turned back
toward the capes on account of the
storm. Captain Baker was on watch
before me, and told me to let him
know If anything went wrong About
12.45, the sea getting worse, / called
him on deck while / went down to
get the pumps working. There was
very little water in the hold, however,
About 8. .15 heard the captain toot the
Routh's whistle several times, and he
said to me that we were sinking.
didn't see any danger, and l told him
so. Then / went down in the hold
again to the pumps Suddenly i heard
somebody on deck YELL and l ran up.
The whole deck was under water and
/ took hold of a rope from the rigging
to save myself. l saw the captain 90
over the stanbOard side. / don't know
where the other two men were, though
the cook, Wixon, had got scared and
gone up in the rigging before that
coming down before the accident.
believe the deck hand was in the whee
house. Then / went aloft and huns
there. When 1 first climbed up I saw
} three lights on the tug, her masthead
: lights and her green starboarC
, light, and l judged she had heard oul
whistle and was turning around; bu
? they disappeared, and / did not see OF
hear anything Of her that night.
( haalooed once in while, and expect
cd every minute to see her heaye II
J sight.
Il think the sea stove the Routh'
stern right in, and the next one SUM
her. for It didn't seem to me that sh
= was overheard or too deep in tn
I. water. From the time first notice
g She was sinking until she disappeare
>. under the water not five minutes pass
a ed. We had a dory on board, but
Y would have been impossible to put he
y ont in that sea. Just as l climbed INT
the rigging 1 heard something tina
sounded like a scream, but took II
he the stetson's whistle. That was lD'
r fore | saw the lights. l hid not sc
a ca.4ai,, cbandler till the next mOrI
ie ing after 1 was rescued, when l sa
j. him here in Philadelphia"
ID Commissioner Craig reviewed u
testimony presented at the three hea
ings. and said he did not consider
prima facie case had been made o.
IS against the captain for miscondu'
5 negligence and inattention, or for fal
e. ING to rescue the men, as the char
d. ,-ead and he therefore ordered the ca
Se dismissed.