Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1864-11-16
Launch of the Conanche.

The following description of the successful
launch of the Comanche is from Monday
evenings Alta:
The long expected event Of the launch Of
the ironclad Monitor Comanche came off
this morning as per announcement, and was
witnessed by an immense concourse Of our
citizens. The preparations had been fully
completed at an early hour in the morning,
and the contractors only waited the food
tide, the highestwAich will occur for months,
to send the iron Monitor into the waters Of
the bay. The launch was announced to
take place at ll:30 A. NJ, precisely, but thou
sands upon thousands of our citizens, who
had been for months expecting to witness
the memorable scene delayed, starting for
the locality until after IL o'clock, and either
arrived too late entirely, or barely in season
TO see the vessel gliding from the ways. At
ll:20 o'clock, probably twenty-five thousand
people had gathered within the enclosure, in
the elevated seats on the west side of the
yard, or on the tops Of the buildings and hill
sides surrounding, and at least as many more
were hurrying to the scene. At ll:25, pre-
cisely, Mr.. Ryan, managing contractor, gave
the word, the blocks were knocked away and
in an instant the immense weight Of the ves-
sci sent her swiftly forward down the we'll
oiled WAYS like an arrow down the groove Of
a cross-bow. About hundred and fifty per-
sons, including a number of ladies, were on
deck, and as the vessel started an immense
cheer broke from the assembled multitude
on board and on shore, while the Ninth
Infantry Band struck up loyal air.
The vessel was launched stern foremost,
and q number of empty casks had been fast
ened under the stern by chains to prevent
her diving into the mud at the bottom, by
throwing her up on the surface suddenly, and
thus shooting her out into deep water. At
the moment Of her striking the water, Miss
Millie Mcguire, niece of Peter Donahue,
ESQ.,, knocked the neck from a bottle Of
champagne and, pouring the wine over the
deck at the point where the turret is to stand,
christened the defender Of our harbor the
Comauche in the usual formula. The shock
OF striking the water, although hardly no.
ticed BY those on board, owing to the i'm
mense weight Of the vessel, was sufficient to
snap the chains which held the casks under
the stern and set them all free, and the dip Of
the vessel was Just sufficient to allow the
great wave thrown up by the entrance of the
mighty mass of iron into the Bay to break
over the stern and flow back towards the bow
for distance of perhaps thirty feet, but not
to wet even the soles Of the shoes of those on
board. A guy-rope or cable Of great size had
been fastened in such manner as to bring
strain on the starboad side of the stern IRE
versing the usual order Of speaking of mat
tiers on shipboard on account Of her being
launched stern foremost) as she approached
the new extension of Third street wharf, and
thereby sheer her of towards the mouth of
Mission Creek, and prevent severe shock
by her striking the wharf, which had, in the
most inexcusable manner, been built so as to
interfere with the launch, and make COLI
sion of greater or less force matter of abso-
lutte certainty.
The rope gave way Just at the right point,
and, although the stern struck the tenders of
the wharf and glanced off, and the side of the
Monitor also rubbed hard against it, no dam
age worth mentioning was done to the wharf
and none to the vessel. The necessity of
guarding against this collision was, we regret
to add, the cause Of a distressing accident,
which will probably cause one Of our most
valuable and highly respected citizens, State
Senator John P. Buckley, to become Grip
pie for life. Mr.. Buckley was standing down
nearly to the stern Of the vessel, in advance
las the vessel was launched) of the crowd on
the deck, and was urging back parties who
were pressing forward beyond the limits
marked out by the stretching OF rope from
side to side. As the vessel started, he shook
our reporter cordially by the hand, exclaim-
ing: "Hurrah for the Union, Evans, we are
off," He had hardly spoken the words-our
reporter having run still further forward to
observe the effect Of the vessels striking the
water-when the rope suddenly gave way,
and looking back, we saw him stretched at
full length on the deck, with his left leg shat
tered to pieces at the ankle, the rope having
struck him, with tremendous "thud," the
force of which would have broken off wood
en- post foot in thickness. He was instantly
surrounded by a crowd of sympathizing
friends, and was attended by Drs. Stout and
Aver, who were near him when the accident
occurred. His wound is described as COM
pound fracture of the ankle joint, and there
is little hope of his foot being saved.
With this sole exception nothing occurred
to mar the success Of the launch, and every
thing passed of in the most happy manner.
As the vessel entered the water and shot
swiftly out into the bay, the band struck up
successfully the "Star Spangled Banner"
"Red, White and Blue" and the ever popu-
lar "Battle Cry Of Freedom" the air was
rent with the piaudits of the spectators, and
the Revenue Cutter Marcy fired a salute.
The entrance Of the Monitor into the bay
caused "a tremendous commotion in the
waters, and sent the multitude of small craft
which had gathered around, bobbing about in
q most comical style, and came near causing
the death Of number of persons who were
in boats under the new wharf, an instant be-
fore, and barely got out from under it in sea-
sop to escape being crushed up against the
planking, and fattened into so many PAN
cakes. Just as the launch was completed,
the steamer San Rafael came around Rincon
Point, with at least one thousand people on
board, and their disappointment can better
be imagined than described.