New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-07-31
DEPARTURE OF TIE GREAT EASTERN.

If the united suffrages Of all the people who wish
well 60 the Great Esstern and success 70 her present
tip could have been concentrated on the appointment
of a pleasant day. their unanimous vote could not
have indicated time more suspicious and every way
delightful than was vouchsafed yesterday for the de-
parture of the mighty craft her first trip between
ports exclusively American. From Tenth street to
the Battery all along the Jersey as well as the New
York shore and all along the extended water line OF
the Brooklyn docks, every pier and bulkhead was
crowded with people, and every one OF the myri.
ads of vessels commanding possible view OF
The Great Eastern was thronged with human In
dividuals. from the deck to the uppermost
boldinpon place. And while the brave men
monopoized for the most part the masts, and other
exalted positions such az they only coad ATTAIN the lar
women congregated in thousands on the piers, aud
decks and shores and such other places as could be
achieved without sacrifice of maiden modesty. Estl-
mates of incompact crowds are doubtless generally
wide Of the true mark but spectator of the grand
seene will set the chIonicler down as mad when he
records here bis deliberate opinion that the departure
of the steamship Great Eastern was witnessed by the
wandering optics of at least one hundred thousand
Yankee souls Five miles of waterfront piled forty
deep scores of excursion craft Of all dimensions
from the skif with two men to the magnificent
river steamer with her fifteen hundred passengers
contributed to make up the immense crowd. And
further down, Fort Hamilton, Bay Ridge, Coney Isl
and and the nights of Staten Island, were black with
multtudes of spectators For hours before the gad-
tic steamer was ready to start she was surrounded by
boats and steamers of all imaginable dimensions which
sailed round and round her, thereby giving the
anxious passengers complete view of her tre-
mendous proportions Many of these boats came
from far distant points along the Hudson, East River
and from Newark and other places in New-Jersey.
The calculations of those who chartered these boats
were in many cases las in that of the Newark boats
go far transcribed that they overcrowded before
leaving home and were unable to take on board any
New-York passengers; hundreds, therefore, who had
intended to accompany the great steamer on her trip
down the bay found themselves unwillngly left be-
hind from sheer lack of room on the boats to take
them on board.
Beside the steamboats, regularly advertised to leave
there were many pira cal craft, chartered at the last
minute by shrewd spectators, which up and down
the river touching momenarly at piers hired by the
regular boats and snatching here and there score Of
passengers until they too were surfeted and had to
cry Hold enough The river presented spectacle
most beautiful and seldom equaled; the wharves
crowded with people, the ships bearing, even to their
main trucks in some cases. strange human fruit; the
ships prolific in manycolored flags the bands of mu-
ETC the salutes of artillery the cheers of the people,
and in the midst of ALL the mighty ship of ships her
self, all contributed the various parts of spectacle
which words never duplicate.
The Great Eastern hauled ont into the stream on
Sunday afternoon, and in doing so stirred up the mud
and brought to the surface the mutated remains of the
"a aa;Io "a har daak nd
drowned the night of her arrival in port. At p. m.
yesterday she had received on board all her pas
sengers amounting to about 400 and hurried prepar
atoms were in progress get Off before the tide failed
She was advertised at o'clock, but exercised
the prerogatve of all objects of public alteration and
was an hour or 80 bebindhand. At o'clock, lazy
gang of blueshrted sailors lesurey employed in
hosting mattresses on board This labor of love
cuded they proceeded to hoist the anchor after which
two tue-boa's, seemingly incompetent to the task,
essayed to pull her downstream. Thee boats at
last succeeded in getting her ready to start when start
che did, at little past 4. She surrounded by
perfect feet of excursion steamboats, among which the
follow ing doomed conspicuous: The Mayfower Tiger,
Red Jacket Thomas b. Way, Huguenot, Keyport,
Hendrix Hudson, Flushing, Thomas Hunt G.. B. Fra
ser, Daniel Drew, Highland Light, Delaware, James
A. Stevens Taminend, Satellite, Columbia Huntress
Belle and Moses Taylor. The Great Eastern had the
American flag the fore and the British ensign at the
peak The passengers crowded her decks and climbed
into the tops, and filled the shrouds, whence they re-
sponded to the cheers that given from every sde
The lady passengers too, waved their handkerchief
and did their feminine utmost to make appropriate
demonstration. Attended by the fleet Of subordinate
vessels the Great Eastern made her way down the
harbor, the grandes craft that waters will proba-
bly, ever float.