Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-07-30

being able to stir the passengers with
music from his single instrument,
also left the boat in New York.
A commentable part of the attitude
of the musicians in preferring to re-
turn home by rail was the fact that
during the earlier hurry and skurry
of the panie-stricken passengers they
struck up tunes calculated to restore
confidence.
William Roebling, Adolph Hensler
and Paul Schorr We're probably the
closest of all the excursionists to the
part of the Majestic that came in
contact with the barge. They were
seated together on the first deck
chatting away, when Mr. Hensler re-
marked to Roebling:
BILLY, we are going to strike that
barge as sure as guns. Brace your
self"
Roebling's Graphic Story.
Roebling tells the rest of the story
in this way:
Il arose with Mr. Hensler and Mr..
Schor and we grasped a stanchion of
the boat. We were but a short dis
lance from the barge, which was tieo
to the dock at Eighty-sixth street
The Majestic was moving rapidly and
we were close to the Manhattan shore
and the tide was running strong at
this point. which it always does.
Our boat passed a tug and barge
that were toward midstream, but
went head on against the barge
fastened to the dock, going many feet
into ii and swapping the rope that had
held it fast as if it were a shoestring
We were Jared when the impact
came, and while the man and woman
in the barge made desperate attempts
to reach safety, Schorr who had re-
moved his coat, sprang to the barge
and Immediately after plunged into
the river. He was picked up by a
man who rowed out from the shore
near the Eighty-sixth street dock. The
others went down and were drowned.
II want to say that / have wit
messed some panicky happenings in
my time but nothing that stirred me
as much as the scenes that ensued
among the passengers on the Majestic
after that collision"
Roebling's statements were borne
out by many others, who, while not
so near as he had been, were in a
position to observe all that occurred.
Every telephone in the vicinity OF
the Eighty-siXth street dock was kept
busy for a long time by Newarkers,
assuring their friends at home that
they were safe.
Majestic Captains Explanation.
Captain James Burke. who resides
at 101 Congress street, this city, was
in command of the Majestic at the
time of the collision. To an Evening
| Star reporter ne made this statement
of the occurrences:
,"The accident was one of those af-
fairs that was absolutely unaavoid-
able We were going down stream at
a fair rate when l noticed that the
boat was being carried shoreward by
| the heavy tide ] gave signals FOR
| full speed astern. There was appar-
entity no response by the boat and |
became aware that the steering ap
| paratus was not working properly.
| Before anything could be done, we
crashed full force into the lighter
The captain was in the pilothouse
! with Pilot John Taylor when the
crash occurred. Taylor confirmed the
statements of the captain that the
affair was unavoidable. Chief En-
gineer Charles e. Milbury declared
that he had received orders for full
speed astern and that the orders OF
the captain had been carried out. He
could not say whether the steering
apparatus was working properly
The Majestic, which on each
Wednesday makes a special trip, die
nos make it's usual run last night
This was at the order of George c
Wiedenmayer, its owner. who. undei
the conditions, would not permit tn,
boat to make the usual trip
Hundreds of relatives and friend.