The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-04-19
GERMAN AGENTS ON
PATRICIA SET FIRE
TO THE TRANSPORT
Representative of Owners
on the Ship Imperial
5000 Soldiers
GERMAN PUT IN IRONS
The Chief Hamburg American Repre-
sentative Insists Prisoner Is
Demented
GERMAN PUT IN IRONS

BOSION, Aprll 19-Ju ulluS iSchei' ,
an agent of the Hamburg American
Steamship line, set fire to stateroom
of the transport Patricia on Tuesday
night, while the vessel was steaming
to this port with nearly 5000 Am
erican soldiers. The fire was extin-
guished by members of the crew and
Fischer was placed in irons.
The Patricia halls from Hamburg
and is one of the first of the German
merchant fleet to be turned over for
use by the United States according
to an agreement with Germany.
Fischer is one of several Germans
who were allowed to remain on board
the liners to represent the vessels
owners.
The German was taken to the naval
hospital tonight for observation. 9th
er German agents and a number of
American officers on the Patricia said
that Fischer began to act strangely
when the steamer was four days out
of Brest, and that he was confined
in a stateroom, under guard. Ernest
Weimmer, chief of the German
agents, insisted that Fischer was
mentally unbalanced when he set the
fire.
Major Frank w. Cavanaugh, form
er Dartmouth football coach, said
that the doughboys had an exciting
few minutes when it was learned that
a German had set fire to the ship and
that members of the crew were fight
ing the blaze.
"We had no idea at the time" he
said, chow serious the fire was. The
German kept out of sight for the re-
nainder of the voyage"
Fischer, according to Major Cava-
naugh, set the fire by manipulating
electrical wires when the man who
was guarding his stateroom went to
another part of the ship. When the
guard returned he found that Fischer
had locked himself in the room and
that smoke was coming from the op-
ening along the door.
The guard yelled at Fischer and
received no response. He called
members of the crew, who smashed
down the stateroom door and flooded
the room with water and chemicals.
The bed clothing and the woodwork
in a corner of the cabin was burned.
Fischer was standing in the stateroom
INN mr.
were unable to obtain an explanation
from him.
The Patricia was met in the harbor
by naval vessels and craft carrying
official welcoming committees and
relatives of soldiers. A delegation.
from Rhode Island on board the ferry
boat, John H. Sullivan met with mis-
fortune. The craft no sooner had
reached the Particia's side than the
transport lifted anchor from quaran-
tine and steamed to it's berth.
Captain Charles S. Winsor of the
Patricia said that the first time it was
noticed that Fischer was not acting
normally was when he threw over
board a silver cigarette case, loaned
him by an American Captain. The
officer had offered the German a Gig
arctic. Fischer ran to his stateroom
after this act and returned with a
dollar bill which he attempted to give
to the American.
Later, Captain Windsor said,
Fischer violently abused anything
American. The Germans had free run
of the vessel, and except for Fischer,
caused no trouble.
At Commonwealth Pier the ferry
boat was unable to hold its place in
the parade up the harbor and fell
far astern. A band on board kept
playing "The Gangs All Here"
The harbor reception was carried
out in drizzle, and the atmosphere
was so heavy that it was necessary to
steam close to the Patricia to obtain
a good view of the hundreds of
troops who leaned over the rails and
shouted that they were glad to be
home.
Major Gen. Clarence r. Edwards
went down to the harbor on scout