Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1914-05-09
City Officials and Many Others
in Funeral Procession to
St. Mary'S Cemetery.
DELUGE OF FLOWERS
Firemen Form PhaIanX Around
Bier of Their Late Leader
in Fire Fighting.

During five minutes Of silence
when business on the principal
streets of the city and work in all
departments of the city were sus-
pended, Perth Amboy paid its last
tribute of respect to the memory of
its late fire chief, William P. OHara,
who died Tuesday afternoon, follow
ing colds contracted doing his duty
as fireman at numerous conflagra-
tions during the past year
The fire bell tolled It's first sad
note at II 10 o'clock this morning,
and the merchants as one man laid
aside their business interests to hon.
or the man who had indirectly laid
down his life for the city's welfare.
Mayor Garretson, the Board of
Aldermen, nearly every member of
the fire department of the local Ex-
empt Firemen's Association did hom-
age to the dead chief, and marched
in the funeral procession to St.
Mary's cemetery, the dead fireman's
final resting place. Not for years
were there SO many to honor a dead
official as swelled the marchers in
the funeral procession, which near
ly one-half mile long wended it's way
from St Mary's church In High
street to State, to Smith and out
New Brunswick and Amboy avenues
to the cemetery
A profusion of flowers well-befit-
ting the esteem and love of a nation
wide hero. h1eaa .to e-..sr .-,s.,.,s.s ~
carriage preceding tiis 3 = &8ffaf
which was escorted by mem bers OF
the Lincoln Engine Company, of
which the late chief was a member.
The firemen of this company formed
phalanx around the bier as it was
drawn on its way.
About 200 firemen in dress uni
forms, including seventeen "ex-
empts' in the emblematical red
shirts; some 200 members of a dozen
societies to which the late chief be-
longed; a platoon of police; city Of
ficials and forty carriages, formed
the funeral procession of some 900
friends and relatives of the dead
fireman.
The requiem high mass for the
repose of the fire hero's soul was cell
ebrated at st. Mary's church at 10
o'clock by Rev. Charles Farran, cell
ebrant, assisted by Rev. James Nc
Keever, first deacon, and Rev Jo-
seph Urban, of st. Stephens Polish
church, sub-deacon The church was
filled with "a crowd estimated at
1,400, not including scores that
stood before the church on the
streets.
The magnificent floral contribu-
tions of wreaths, crosses, etc, came
mostly from tiremen, the chiefs and
his host of friends. The coffin was
borne into the church by the fol-
lowing eX-chiefs of the fire depart
ment acting as pail bearers: John J.
Deveny, William P. Meshrow, Pat
rick j Rocks, j. N. Van Horn,
George Larson, Theodore Anderson,
A. H. Crowell and w. C. Martin.
The procession began fofming in
front of the late chiefs residence
about O'Clock and moved to the
church, arriving shortly after 10
o'clock, and after the mass a sermon
by Father Farran, started its journey
to the grave.
The pageant was lead by Mounted
Patrolman Fhtung, followed by Pa
trolman Gutowski, Bachmann, Quin-
Ian and Kasprsczak on foot Mayor
Garretson and Alderman-at-Large
Weaver, followed by Aldermen Kel-
ly, Kutcher, Hilker, Jorgensen and
Clark. Alderman Wilson marched
with the firemen Following the
representatives of the societies came
the firemen, marshalled by Chiefs
Woitscheck and Tooker.