Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1910-08-13
Ne WARKER WHO
FELL 1900 FEET
HAD Pre- EM0NITION
81 May Never Come Back to
You Alive" He Told
Brother. IL
| MOTHER ASKED HIM TO
GIVE UP PROFESSION.
Benjamin Prinz JOked With
Friends Just BeforeMe
Made Ascension. 81

Hle&0S ASSEM0AVns Zi
That Benjamin Prinz. the young
Newark aeronaut. who met his death
by pIunging from one Of Johnnie
Mack's balloons at the aviation meet
at Asbury Park yestenday. had a pre-
monition of his death and had made
preparations for It was made known
In statement given a representative
of the EVENING STAR by William
Prinz. brother of the dead man.
The bailoonist. whose age is 26 years.
visited the home of his brother, who
I lives at 56 Bragaw avenue. on Tues
day, just before leaving for AFbury
cited and assured his brother that he
/ felt something was going to happen
/ to him.
81 may never come Isnelx to you alive.
Prisz told his brother and his sister
I fn-Iaw. aTf Pm killed al want you to
take care of my body. See that 1 get
a decent burEaI.s
After making this statement Prfnz
drew = long enve1oue from an inner
pocket and gave 1T to his brother.
ssHere are my insurance papers," ne told
him." I want you 10 have them In case
anything happens to meg
In a cupboard In his brothers hozne
were number OF photographs OF the
aeronaut. These he took out, looked
through them and selecting several re-
marked to his brothers .some of the
boys have asked me for my picture.
l may as well take these now and give
them to my friends There may mot be
another opportunity for me TO do IT.
After this he kissed his brother, his
sister-in-law and their infant child
and rushed out TO catch his train for
Asbury Park
Mrs. Joseph Lnrksr. mother of tho
young aeronau1 who lives at Four
teenth avenue and Twelfth street. told
representative OF the EVENING
STAR today that she had begged and
pleaded with her son not to make the
"trip to Asbury Park and TO give up
his chosen profession
Mother Plead with Him.
Until last Sunday" said Mrs.
! Lurker. Il did not object to Bennie
/ making the balloon ascensions He
seemed confident that there was no
danger in his profession. and I be-
| lieved him. Last Sunday, however,
saw him make an ascension at Elec-
trio Park, and when his balloon rose
far out Of my sight 1 decided. TO
demonstrate with my boy and beg him
TO give up the business
.All day Tuesday. before he left for
the meet, continued my pleading that
he stay at home. Don't worry mother
there is no donger.' he told me. and !
finally gave in"
1t seems that Prinz was not sched-
uled to make the ascent which his
1 mother witnessed on Sunday. James
Fleming, who was his partner on the
fatal ascent Of yesterday. was sup
posed TO go up in the balloon at Electric
Park. but he was prevented from soS
doing by his mother. Mrs. Fleming
visited Captain Vogel. of the Fourth
Precinct, outlined her objections to him,
and the captain sent patrolrnan to
visit the young aeronaut and to prohfbk
his making the ascent. Fleming obeyed
the officer and Prinz was substituted.
Estimates of the height from which
Prinz fell in his plunge to death. given
b.
ground, increased the distance from
5000 to 5000 feet
THE first estimate of 5000 feet was
altogether too conservative" said one
who is accustomed to measuring the
distance from the earth Of balloons and
aeroplanes. 'I would place It IS more
than 1000 and very close to 5000 feet.
Johnnie Mack. the Newark aeronsnt.
who employed Pripz. refused to discuss
the accident this morning when sp-
preached by reporters.
"I have nothing TO say about the
matter" was all that Mack would say.
Friends of the dead balloonist, how
ever, did not hesitate to allege that
Prinz was in no condition to make the
ascent when he left the ground on the
crossbar of his parachute yesterday.
According to their story. Prinz was
suffering from badly strained wrist.
which resulted from severe jerk
given his arms as he made a sudden
drop some time ago.
Parachute Was Damp.
The parachute to which he was hang
ing Yesterday was damp and when he
released it from the balloon 1t refused
! TO open easily as It was supposed 20
90. Dul SuuueHit Sptee1d Jul Stss7SAufS
the precipitous drop which began when
/ I it was set free 50 suddenly that the
twinge of pain which came to Prinz's
injured wrist forced him to let go and
fall TO his death.
This of course. must not be accepted
as a true story OF the affair. It is only
theory advanced by friends Of the
: balloonist who, nevertheless, knew him.
his condition and the condition Of his
balloon and parachute so well that Il
can be assumed that they were able to
: speak with authority on the cause OF
the accident
Those who were with Prinz before
he mounted his balloon on the fatal
trip say that the nervousness that he
displayed before leaving for Asbury
J Park had entirely disappeared.
A correspondent OF the STAB and a