The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-07-06
THE MISSISSIPPI RACE.
The Contest Between the Steamers Il. Il. Ace
and Misunderstanding CairO-LO& Of. the
Winning Stenmcr.

The Contest Between the Steamers Il. II. Ace
and Nstchez-Passing Cairo--Log Of, the
Winning Steamer.
ICairO correspondence July 81 OF the Cincinnati
Commercially
Owing to the fact that neither the Lee nor Natchez
landed here your correspondent WIS 40 engaged
making arrangements 10 get on 0eard ana get
ashore again that regular river hport can be
you. Dropping on board the LIE in md-riycr as
following items during two mi Nss' rde:--The Lees
officers report leaving New Orleans at fity.nne
minutes past four o'clock p A., dune 80. she ar
rive here at nfy nine mnu rs past five O'Clock this
evening New orleans tilnel making three lays and
one hour out between the Two cities. The Natchez
was precisely one hour and twelve minutes
behind the Lee at Cairo Point The follow
Ing Is the tame OF the Lee AZ Kept by
her pilots and Clerk, who both agree
From New Orleans to CerrOton, 2S minutes; 10
Harry HIS, hour and 80 seconds; 10 Red Church,
l honr and 80 minutes; College Point, hours, 80
minutes; Donaldsonvi,le. 4 hours and 90 minutes;
Plaquensne, hours and minutes Baton Rouge,
hours and as minutes; Fort Tunca Island, IL hours
and So minutes; Red river, ~ hours and DC min
nutes; Natchez IL hours and ii minutes; Rodney,
20 hoprs and 40 minutes; st. Joseph, q hours;
day ana minutes; vicksburg, day and 36 min
ules; head of Pawpaw Island, day, hours and 10
minutes; Napoleon, day, 10 hours and 20 minutes;
White river, day, 10 hours ana So minutes; Helena
/ day % hours and 20 minutes; st. Francis river,
days and minules Memphis, 2 days. o hours and
minutes; New Madrid DAYS. 10 hours and 80 min
utes; Hickman days - hours and % minutes;
Columbus, days, % hours and 81 minutes; Upper
Tow Head, above Columbus, days. Cairo, days
and hour.
lhis is the fastest time ever made to any place
named, except the Lee 5 run on time from Memphis
TO Cairo 1867, which was sixteen hours anu Unity
seven minutes. The Lee ran under the disadvan-
Mics ahova Nav op,esn p and was cdwnnl,ed ~
keep TWO men constantly at work TO keep the leak
from becoming TOO large to allow full supply OF
water TO the boilers. The leak in the pipe is so
great that the bilge pumps are compelled 10 run TO
free the hull from water. She also lost some time
the way by rveting her steam drum which was
leaking ul1ly. and compelled allow her
steam 10 go down to ninety pounds to repair.
The Natchez lost considerable time also with her
pump, but could obtain no definite Information OF
now much. The Lee's progress from New Orleans
was q long, continued ovation. Cannon
sent up, and every day The banks OF The
great river showed groups and crowds OF men, wo-
chiefs. AT Natchez the famous horns OF the Prln-
cess, whose time has not been beaten Tor fourteen
years, were taken down and are now on board Of the
Robert +. Lee, iarly and honorably won. The cti-
zens OF Cairo fired cannOl many times while the
Lee was passing, and the whole population turned
out en- noasse while over 900 persons from Louis
vile, vt. eLouis, Evansville, Paducah and other
places were here or on board the steamers Odd Fell
low. ldewild, Armada, Ruhicon and Others which
went down the river several miles to see the
wonderful racers pass under full Roadway. The
swift steamer Idewid, the crack boat OF the
lower Ohio river, went alongside the Lee to obtain
passengers, and although the Idlcwild was at her
greatest speed, the Lee was passing rapidly as TO
render IL Impossible TO make rope fast TO the Idle.
wild until the Lee stopped her engines During the
greater part OF the race the competitors have been IN
sight OF each other adding greatly TO the excitement
and character OF the race. Some Southern paper
said the Lee ran into q chute and compelled to
back out Her pilots contradict thisbrepOrt. About
eight miles above Cairo the Lee seemed touch
tom, and for some minutes she was turned cross
ways on the river In full sight Of Cairo. The Natchez
ran the same course, and did precisely the same
thing. Each boat lost about four minutes there.
Both boats lost one h0ur-prObaby more-asI night
by fog and darkness.
The Best Time in 1S4A-The improvements
i'm River Navigation since the Famous Trip
of the j. NJ. White.
Captain Jonathan warden, who was assistant enc
gineer of the J. M. White when she made ner fast
run, sends the st. Louis Democrat the following let
ter from Independence, Mo-
To THE EDITORS THE MISSOURI DEMoCRAr:-
AS the trip Of the Natchez Is all the talk l will
give you few points on the famous j. "a. White and
her run, not generally known. When the run was
steamboatnen that the J. NJ. White coult make the
trip IN SIX hours less time than il was done In. That
was The opinion also OF the officers Of the boat, and
In proof OF the statement she did afterward, when
In the V1cksburg trade, beat her own time something
over two hours TO Nachez on a business trip, when
commanded by Captain Swan.
First, the packing in use was cotton and hemp,
which had to be screwed up Or repenished every
day, causing loss OF time on the trip of not less
than TWO hours. Secondly, no pumping engine but
the old style pumps, on two occasions during the
trip causing some loss of time by having partially TO
cool down. Thirdly, by getting on stump or log at
Hardeman's white woOding of the shore, causing
considerable loss or time. As was ut the engine
at tue Tune ana BUSY, can give you no Idea except
by guess, OF the time that ost--say thirty min
utes. Filthy, as the water wheels at that time
constructed without circles, and the river full
of drift logs the buckets or paddles were driven up
TO the braces on the wheel arms leaving the buckets
without sufficient dip. The SUBJECT was under
sderaton by the captain and chief engineer, Mr.. W.
Few to stop and shift The buckets to the end OF the
arms The conversation did take place between
the towns OF Randolph, Tenn, and New Madrid,
Mo. The boat al the time was falling or
in her speed: the engineer contending that
we would make time by stopping and shifting the
buckets; but the captain would not take any
chances, as we were certain to make the best time
to Cairo and ST. Louis that had been made, at the
rate OF speed we were then making, without some
accident occurring.
point point below Randolph, you will see ut a
glance THAI the engineer was right and that better
time would have been made II the buckets had been
shifted to the end OF the arms.
One other point on which there IL some mistake:
that IL as regards the points In which the time was
taken. The crew did understand that the start
Ing OF the engines at New Orleans time commenced
and on the stopping or the engines at ST. Louis
was up, which would make some difference in favor
OF the J. M. White OF some twenty minutes or more.
The White did make from Cairo to st. Louis, a
business trip the same season, two hours better
tlme-a little short OF II.
The crew of the j. NJ. White mt the time would
have bet every dollar they could raise that they
could. on the next trip, have come from New
Orleans 10 ST. LOUIS and won their money on it, In
three days and eighteen hours
the MUSICAL BEGIN:
The Department OF Public Parks announce that il