The Penn's Grove record., 1907-08-16
ARE DROWNED
IN NEEDLESS PANIC
Lost When Launch Seems Sinking
in Raritan Bay.
FATHER PERlSHES SAVING BOY
Fly Wheel of Engine Drives Hole in
Craft-Good Swimmer Becomes
Entangled in Party's Fishing
Lines and Loses Life.

Lines and Loses Life.
Red Bank, N. J.-Borne down in a
panic as the launch Savoy began sink
ing in Raritan Bay, off Port Mon
mouth, four men in a fishing party of
eleven we're drowned, and the others
we're saved with great difficulty. One
IF the four lost his life in saving that
Of his son. He was Gustave Metzger,
sixty years old, a chemist. The>lad
was rescued, but the father was dead
when taken ashore. The other men
who met death were Charles Guen-
Their, forty years old, Of No. As Ann
street, Newark; Charles Weber, of No.
"A Napoleon street, that city, n
Frank F. Schrierer, president OF the
Newark Metal Company, living in No.
252 Van Buren, street, there. Guen-
Their, who was in command OF the
launch, was in business in No. 26
Houston street, Newark. Only his
body and Metzger's were recovered.
A peculiar accident started the pam
ic and partly sank the boat. The
Savoy had been leaking from the time
she left Newark. She vas a twenty
five foot craft of seventy-horsepower.
Her seaworthiness was not affected
materially by the leak, however, un-
til it was time for her to head for
home. Captain Guenther by that time
saw the launch was not in shape to
make the return run without vigor-
ous bailing. He called for a pump
and hooon onarotipo IF Nhon ho
was doing so the engineer started the
fly wheel, evidently with the idea of
losing no time in getting closer to
shore.
That turned out to be the worst
thing that could have been done, for
a knob on the wheel struck the pump
with great force and drove it through
not only the flooring but the bottom
of the boat. Acting as a giant dart,
the pump made a big hole in the
crafts bottom and the accident was
followed by an thrush of water that
frightened most of the men aboard.
A projectile Of equal size hardly could
have torn a larger opening in the
bottom. Water burst III furiously,
and, though three CT four of the
cooler members of the party lore OFF
much of their clothing and tried to
stop the leak with the garments, the
inflow could not be checked sufficient
ly to allay the fears of the menaced
men.
A scramble for safety resulted
While there vas no deliberate brutal.
ity, the stronger in tferT rush for life
preserverS knocked down the weaker
The Metzger boy vas flung to the t1ool
of the launch, whence his father
raised him at the risk of being
trampled to death. Within a minute
most of the men were struggling fol
the pTeservers, and in the press sew.
eral were forced overheard. The
Metzger boy, having been restored tt
his footing by his father, ran toward
the other end of the boat, where HI
fell overheard. Metzger jumped in
to the water to rescue the lad a sec
ond time and soon sank, leaving the
lad to be saved by others. His body
returned to the surface and was re.
covered.
Guenther probably would have
saved himself. for he was a goot
swimmer, had not his feet become
entangled in fishing lines hanging
OFeF the Ol tne DOdC. lit
fell head first into the bay, his fee
held by the lines, and though ht
fought gamely to free himself, he wa!
unable to do so. Weber and Schrier
or sank almost as soon as they fel
into the water. Apparently neither
of them could swim.
The nearest craft to the sinking
launch was the sloop r. Hand, com
manded by Captain Walls. She hur
ried to the assistance of the fishing
party and Walls took the seven sur
vivors aboard, as we'll as the body O.
the elder Metzger. None of the foul
men need have drowned, it developed
for the launch, despite the terribl,
wound she received when the pumI
was driven through her bottom, sanl
only to the gunwale.