Perth Amboy evening news., 1918-11-07

t4Ate the mayor m
City Attorney Leo G~oldberger told
Of turning out on guard duty and told
OF officers Of the Gillespie Company
who told him he vas advising people
that the worst was yet to come. II
was a uniformed man but Goldberger
could not tell who he was.
TAKE ELEVEN-Investigation-
Charles n. Snyder. mayo of Allan
tic Highlands. said people of his place
attributed It to the proving grounds
at Fort Hancock but soon found Ii to
be at Morgan.
He said the new buildings at Nor
gan are little prettier fire hazards than
those before but are just as dangerous
and are again being placed in clusters.
/ The danger seems to me to be in
the clustering of these units" he said.
j. III. Thayer Martin. Township At
torncy of Woodbridge said the Mayor
of Woodbridge could not be present.
IF those big magazines had gone
of" he said. lit would probably have
set OF some of the powder works.
both on the south side of the Raritan
river and at the Nixon Vibration
works and at the Raritan arsenal on
the north side where an explosion
might occur. which would be far
greater than those at Morgan.
Mr.. Martin said that had the big
magazines gone off, no one knew how
great h disaster might have been.
Commissioner John ]. Morrison of
New Brunswick. acting for Mayor Ed
ward Harrington. told of the location
or New Brunswick and that the ex-
plosion. while visibly felt in New
Brunswick did very little damage.
Nicholas Hughes. federal inspector
of explosives for New Jersey whose
duty 1T is to keep Washington in
formed on the amount of explosives
kept in this state and for the issuing
of licenses for keeping OF explosives in
his state. said a manufacturer IL
cense had been issued to the Gillespie
Company from Washington.
Roger f. Murray of Fiainfield told
of rumors In his city and of the de-
sire of people there to ascertain what
prospect there were for a recurrence.
Senator Frelinghuysen asked Mr..
Faulk to give the committee figures
on the amount of T. N. t. at the plant
and the amount used there daily.
All at government agencies IN
Washington.
w. w. Ramsay. mayor OF Keans-
burg, told of kilograms sent to his
town.
Freebooter F. William Hilker told
of the roo of the roof of the Mu-
nicipal Lighting Plant being blown
off. The slabs OF reinforced
concrete. sixty of them. were blown
pounds apiece n were four by SIX
feet in size.
A. G. clark, superintendent of h
Raritan Copper Works. was at Spring
Lake on the night of the explosion
and felt shocks there. ne said. Dam
age It the Copper Works was s25. 900
to 100000, he said, u the roof of "a
casting building was lifted off and &C.
stroyed.
The south wall of a tank house rs
to 100 feet long collapsed n a por-
tion of the north side collapsed also.
of panes of glass wero
broke and three men were badly cut
and hurt. he said. In describing the
damage.
At this point. the proceedings were
brought to a close for the day, when
Frelinghuysen said hat he
would adjourn the hearing until to-
morning at 10 o'clock in order
to give Senators Myers and Beckham
time to get here andparticipate.
From frequent questioning, the sem
showed h a he considered an M
portant factor in the testimony, the
: ource of the rumors which spread
the state and New York on
Saturday, October 5, taht the popula-
ton should take to the open andFieaVe
homes as more serious explosions
were to be expected at any time. These
rumors were very frequent III this city
at the time.
Just when the Gillespie Company
will have an opportunity to state their
side of the case could not be nscer-
talned, but from the present outlook
1t appears as IL the hearing will take
the better part of the remainder OF
this week. Voluntary witnesses will
again be called tomorrow. and after
The defense council and other muLici-
palities of the state a given theih
the Gillespies VIII have
their chance to testify.
Colonel w. E. S~praunce and Colonel
RaIph Cruise represented the ord