The sun., 1903-05-05
ASURE ENOUGH HAU7GMYsTBRY
IT ~ SONEBODI'y. AND VT HIT
SONEBODY-WH HOSE AND WHONS


william e.. whitney, who Was Accused oi
OWNING II. says Ills Machine DID Not
Run Amnck on Fcrr,bOat = Man
Who said Il Hurt Him can't he FotInd
An automobile which some folks said
belonged 10 the Hon. William &. WHITNEY
came near to dumping itself into the East
River on Saturday night from the deck OF
Thirty-fourth street ferryboat. The ma.
chine hadn't any intention Of committing
suicide when 1t took passage on the boat
en- route for Roslyn, l.. l.. and wouldn't
even have tried TO get its name In the paper
had 1t been permitted to mind its own
automobile business But il wasn't
1t was driven aboard the boat on one OF
the early evening trips by the chauffeur
Phillip Schcppler of $50 West Forty-ninth
street, Manhattan. In one Of the back
seats was a nurse maid, who is said to be
IN the employ of Mrs Harry Payne Whitney
0cheppler drove the machine toward the
forward end Of the boat, brought 1t to a
stop and then got out to stretch his legs
during the trip over the river.
The machine, whoever it belonged to and
whoever's nursemaid it contained, was u
in that part of the boat began TO examine
It critically Somebody, it is supposed,
with an o'erweaning curiosity. wanted TO
see the wheels go round. Now, a we'll
hammered, self-respecting automobile. and
especially one which is received in polite
society, doesn't like to be monheyed with.
Positive evidence is wanting that anybody
did try to trifa with this one, but 1t is taken
FOR granted that somebody did, for suddenly
without so much as wheeze of warning.
the wheels did begin TO go round and the
machine started straight for the river end
of the boat
A collective shou, was raised by the
people near and the chauffeur turned to see
what was the matter. In second he was
at the lever, reversed II and put on the
brake.
The machines momentum was checked
and it came TO full stop, one front wheel
against the deck chain and the other against
a deck post. Nobody supposed that any
particular damage had been done, but when
the excitement was all over, man walked
up to Scheppler and told him, in weil-ac
cented German, that he'd been NEARLY
killed" In proof of this statement, he
showed some barked fingers, and said that
he was suffering from other, bodily ills,
Scheppler was unkind enough to show
little sympathy with the mans alleged in
juries, whereat language was used that had
. more strenuous accent, and when the boat
got to Long Island City the man asked
Detective Kennedy to arrest the chauffeur
Almost anywhere on Long Island it is taken
for granted that the only offence of which
an automobile can be guilty is to run faster
than eight miles an hour. Therefore, Ken
nedy promptly asked:
Where did you catch him?'
@Where did / catch him'" asked the |
German. Il didn't catch him at all. He
caught me by the fingers and the shoulder.
also by the back |
This was AL Greek to Kennedy, but he
To-,
and 20 he took Scheppler into custody. on
the understanding that the German would |
make a complaint Scheppler said that he
had to 60 to Mr. Whitney's place at Wheatley
Hills, but that he would be in police court
he was wanted. Whereupon the German.
who said his name was Morris Haupt OF
20 Avenue B, got out warrant before
Magistrate Connorton. TO which Scheppler
re responded : Yesterday 1 A afternoon; m ,, The
while he was away from the
machine. must have touched a lever and
set it going The Magistrate, finding that
Haupt had received no very serious injury.
discharged the chauffeur.
There can't be real good automobile
story without a mystery. and this tale de-
veloped a very excellent one. Mr. Whitney
said last night that he hadn't heard about
any automobile of his getting into diff
culties. nor had he heard Of machine
getting mixed up with anybody on ferry
boat or anywhere else. He was inclined
to think that somebody had mistaken
somebody elses machine for his. In view
Of what Mr.. Whitney said, the ownership
Of the automobile is still involved in mys-
terry. But that is not ALL A SUN reporter
went up to 20 Avenue B last night to look
for Morris Haupt. No such man could be
found.
The janitor Of the building said that he
hoA haop annloyaJ fharo for 6ya vaoro |
and, 80 far as he knew. nobody Of that name
had ever lived in the house. Just where
anybody got the notion that the automo-
bile belonged to Mr.. Whitney has not been
fully explained. Somebody evidently told
Haupt that it was Whitney machine,
however, for the report from police court
yesterday was that when the German
found he couldn't send the chauffeur to
penal servitude for life or something of
that sort, hey vowed he would bring an
action in the civil courts against Mr.. Whit
ney for the losssof skin on his knuckles and
for other injus3es.