The New York herald., 1922-01-16
HOMEMADE PLANE
RUNS Wild ON RIVER
ICE KILLING. WOMAN
Propeller Amputates Arm
Of Victims Brother, Who
Tries to Save Her.
20 MEN KNOCKED DOWN
Crowd on North Shrewsbury
Flees From Pilotless
Machine.
AVIATOR IS ARRESTED
Starts Airplane With Throt-
tie Open, Fails to Regain
His Seat in Time.
IS ARRESTED

Hoshy ~. f1OuHitldu OF Red
Bank. N. j.. was killed yesterday
afternoon by tie propeller of an air.
plane that had alishted on the ice OF
the North Shrewsbury River at Red
Bank in the midst of several hundred
people skating and watching the ice
boats.
Mrs. Hounihan's brother. Lawrence
Conkley, tried to pull his sister from
the whirring blades, and the propeller
cut off his right arm just below the
elbow. while more than twenty men
who had tried to grab the circling ma
chine were knocked down by the
wings as the plane twisted to one
side in the wind raised by the pro-
peller. None of these, however, was
hurt.
The airplanc. after striking Mrs.
Hounihan and Conkley. went ahead sew
eral yards before the aviator, James
Casey OF Shrewsbury. could get into the
pilots seat and bring it to stop. The
accident caused tremendous excitement
oAhch6 shS .AVWdo tiat Aittu tiiC iiNCI
and lined the bank. and dozen women
tainted and had to be taken home in au-
tomobiles.
Mrs. Hounihan was breathing when
several men reached her after the air
plane had been stopped by Casey, and
she was hurried to the office OF DR.. Ed
win Field. where she died few minutes
later Conkiey was sent In an automo-
bile to the Memorial Hospital. Long
Branch. where his arm was amputatcd
at the shoulder.
Brothers Make Plane.
lCsecy's machine had been constructed
by him and his brother. after he had re-
turned from France where he served as
an aviator with the American Army.
They had been using the airplane TO
take up passengers, and the machine
was a common enough sight to the Red
Bank and Shrewsbury sections OF New
Jersey.
Casey few above the ice yachts and
skaters on the North Shrewsbury for
several hours yesterday. with excursions
over the nearby towns and woods. some
times flying within hundred feet OF the
Ice. from where his friends waved at
him. In the late afternoon Casey drove
his machine up and down the Ice yacht
course several times. and then circied
over the heads of the skaters. prepar-
ing to make a landing.
The skaters scattered to the bank and
left the center of the river clear FOR
the airpiane. Casey brought the ma
chine to the ice and jumped from the
pilots seat. The skaters. together with
many who hurried out from the bank.
where they had been watching the sport.
around the machine. several
hundred In number. The river Is shall
low at the point where Casey landed
his machine, and men who know the
were afraid that the ice
might break, as It was only seven inches
thick at that place.
Ice Cracks Owing TO Crowd.
Two or three OF these men went cut
and told Casey that the ice was danger
Gus for the large crowd and for such
4 great weight as his airpiane. and ad-
rised him to take the machine away.
Even as they spoke the ice began TO
crack and bend. SO Casey decided to
Nv away. The crowd In front backed
away and left a path for him. and he
.ranked the machine. starting the pro-
peller.
Apparently Casey had left the throttle
,pen and the airplane started before
ne could climb into the pilots seat The
machine plunged crazily to the right
where Mrs. Hounihan and her two chill
dren. her husband and her brother we're
standing Hounihan grabbed his chill
lren and showed them back out OF dam
ger. and Mrs. Hounihan and Conkley
started TO follow. But they were too
ate. The propeller struck Mrs. Houni-
nan. knocking her down. ripping OFT al
most all OF her clothing and managing
ner body below the neck. Conkley's arm
was caught by the whlrring blade as
,e reached forward to grab his sister
and drag her out OF danger.
Several men tried to grab the wings OF
The machine and bring II TO stop as
he crowd fought to get out OF the way
,f the whlrring blades OF the propeller.
,ut the airplane tilted to the right again
and began to go around In a circle.
knocking down the men who had tried
o hold the wings.
The crowd pressed back, fighting so
,ard to get away that several nnea and
women were knocked down and trarlplcd.
although they managed TO get TO their
eet before any were hurt
Casey finally got into the drivers seat
before the machine had gone far AMI be-
orc the propeller had struck any one
Use. He stopped the machine and the
.rowd rushed back toward It the moment
he propeller ceased 10 roar.
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