The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1856-01-18
The Shipsvrecked and the Dead.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD.

Is painful indeed sorrovful duty, to cell up the
surngs Of the psstto open the wounds which ue and
the busy of life have partly closed but duty to
the living impes to the task and my pom for
the performances of ths melancholy duty.
It Is but few hours since that report current
that steamer burning upon Long Island Sound
The public mind agoniGsd and most painfully excited
by the tear that human life bad been sacrificed but sui.
sequen accounts relieved 1t of the pain. Since then the
accounts Of marine disasters attended BY melancholy less
Of life, multiply and thi:ksn and the public mind Is
awakened to the necessity f renewed efforts e ~ bs
protection Of tAs lives of the ship ~ccksd The fur
her appropriation for the proteoton Of the shpwrecked
the coast Of New Jersey and Long Island, failed in
Congress- last winter. TIE Of that failure ia proba
bly, known but need not state 1t to the public; the
sequence of that failure is the sad loss Of Gc both
coasts Let those Who have been the Of preventing
tie appropriation remember that the consequences
with them for all time and forever after and heeafe
take heed.
The accompanying printed sheet counts up the dead
under ore head, to the extent OF thousand Ave
hunt red and eighty Q,ts0), drowned. These embrace
those Of the New Powhatan, City Of Glasgow, Arc
tic, Yankee Blade, Waterloo Leviathan and Warner.
anoSer o. thousand three hundred and seventy
Annie Jane Mary Jane, Favorite and Joannes. And still
another amounting to tw, Thousand four hundred e. 4oO
and upwards. These were OF the San Francisco the
iDhead Mercedes, Abolish and Santa Anna and then
comes in addition the Unled States ship OF var Albany
with its great company buried at the bottom OF the
deep. could continue and from my vast records count
up from the drowned and tho burned mighty army of
the dead but what is here is enough to awaken the pub
lie to the necessity Of efficient for tie bst
ter protection Of those who upon the great waters
Much Of the difficulty experienced is from IN made
quate supply Of boats There should be suicency Of
boats in case Of shipwrcck, to save all on board No
vesse should be allowed to go to sea without sush
pa1ation.
An passed by the last Congress authorizes the es-
tablshmcnt life saving stations every Eve miles the
dollars were appropriated towards that object; but
further appropriation required to equip these stations
and provide for their supervision. THIS additional ap-
preparation was made II should have bcen the
last session. Hence the loss Of ife on the coast.
Whenever there is q in Congress these mea-
sures up set Of who insist that their boats
and others, shall be used, and then another set
insisting that they shall share in the patronage. 1t il
this way that these humane measures kept from
being carried out promptly II was SO with the steam
on Lake Eiie the 10th OF Juno Of year. and
hundred and ifty lives were lost the public mind
painfully excited Congress in session, aud bill
was i'm odiaely introduced to prevent such cAamties
in future 1t passed the House Of Representatives by
large vote but HAD 1t reached the Senate than
the patronage, and tho bll was laid the table, AT
length another dsasterthe burning OK the Henry Clay
the Hudscn-resuscitated the BILL and George Davis
then in the senate procured Its passage and 1t Is
Troy, Chairman OF the Committee on Commerce in
the House. and very active In this good and great
measure, and win sustain in this statement, in this
particular case.
The same difficulty exists now on the coasts Of Long
Island and New Jersey as to who shall have the supply
OF the shipwreckcd. Il. MERRIAM.
BsookIiS HEcEIs, Jan. 10, 1856.