The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-07-16
TIE TUGS OF OUR UARB0R.
AN INTER rSTTyG talk WITH OLD
NEW YORK CAPTAINS.

NEW IOHh t1IT1Ihb.
History and Prescott Condition Of TuTbonting
The Porsie tlcet sandy leoh Serv,ce-
The whitehall spiiares-A PIucky Tug
Tux Mems Fortunes and MisIoriune-.
Most, If not all. the old boys are dead
90 passed out OF the business" said Capt. Dem
ing, somewhat sadly, from his perch ON south
street grocery counter; land guess j IN about
one Of the oldest Of the tuEboat men that's left.
] went into II In 1eiD. But there were tugs before
chat-a few only. The first one ever heard Of
w VOL US can remember now was the Rufus
Rsnr. built by that great shipbuilder. Webb,
uhfnk. That was more for his own convenience
than public use, however, and must have been
somewhere before 1910. In 1Su or 1Bt2 there
was a man named Belts went into the business
raRuiary.''
yes" chimed In Caps Tanford, " he was an
snginecr on Brownies ferry--the Cathnrine street
nne It Is now. 1t called Brownies ferry
then. Some person had built little steamboat
called the Dream for sort OF pleasure boat but
Got tired OF her, and Detts bought her and run
her for A turboat They used TO burn pine wood
m those daya, and Belts used to keep pile Of
v on the dock near where bis boat lay. When
snybody, would come along wanting Job
u tueeinr, why, he'd chuck board lot of.
that pine wood, FIRE up, start on. and 10 the lob.
fhsn. when he got through, they'd put back to
her dock, and all hands would 20 up and take
drink. That was always the rule-take a drink
ON the job they'd had before they'd do another.
But be did right well, nevertheless. I've known
Of his making as much as forty dollars day,
and that was n good deal OF money In those
times After awhile he built another tug, which
he called the Gypsy. and soon after that bought
two big boats that had gone out OF the passen-
ger business, the Gen. Linton and another don't
remember the name OF, and put their engines
into two tugs, which he named Storm and Tenn
pest. There were not many tugs then. ami not
for a good while after, probably not more than
half a dozen but can't tell now who tho
Others belonged TO. Belts must have made
great deal Of money; but guess he spent 1t
about No fast as he took It In. A good many
have done that since, and do II yet"
Yes, and II isn't hard to do IN these tines
commented Capt. Stebbins. JoinDg 10, for you
can put It down, Mr.. Reporter, that Of all de-
moralized businesses N Gods footstool, by sea
worst"
THE BusrLrSG CRAFT.
A person looking at the many busy rushing,
pu1fng, energetic looking tugs In our harbor,
would tie slow to Imagine that affairs are bad
as the Captain represented them.
No other boat has such distinctive tndividnali-
" a. atug or CONVEYS so clear an idea OF It's
having avery earnest purpose in the world. "
not actually going somewhere alone AT full
apeed. or desperately struggling with the un.
wieldy bulk of a monster ship whose sides
loom far above IL. or pulling along feet OF
boats; II simply lying still beside a
as II IT were held in with diflcuity,
and never easy when at rest. How slow and
stupid must have been the old way OF getting
ships TO their wharves before tugs were thought
or Then. ship would sail as near ms possible
TO the wharf where she was to lie, drop her
anchor. send line To shore. and 10y tedious and
nrduous toll "warp In" to her berth. When
and, with the help Of small boats. work out to
midstream and away. Now, n she ~ coming
into port, an ontcrprising little tug will rush up
N IA mn NJ mi mi sid la. pf
Hook. make last, and shove her along to where
she IA 20 lie NJ lively gait. II she has to change
from one dock to another. the same busting,
useful little kelpie viii dart 10 her aid. pull her
out Of one place ana shove her INTO another, in
N rched once around the cApstan, hauling In
the warping line TO the tune OF d" stormy Oh
resumed. the kolpie guides ana guards her far
our from land. where the free winds OIL her
the oceans blllOwy breast once more.
THEIR WORK.
But this aiding Of incoming md outgoing ships
IA only portion Of tie tugs business Vessels
are to he shifted from one dock TO another
bargss and canal boats are to be towed htner
and thither ABOUT the city, brought down from
Trenton and "A score oil other places, sent OF far
up the Sound and out to Providence Hnd uthor
eastern POINTS. aud for all thls the tug Is In
QUESTION. Out Of the 240 tugs plying IN aud be-
longing to this harbor, probably not more than
forty live make speciality OF "ths Hook bust
ness which means the towing Of big ships in
and out past sandy Hook and little over half
which signifies similar service 10 vessels arriving
and departing by that route. The gre test num-
Der, variously estimated AT from seventy 1--WE 10
one hundred. belong to the Whitehall Tug aeet,
lying between Piers and q f. X. These are
whether this appel tion is bestowed because Of
their dimiuutive size-they being the smallest
tues Ia the harboI-or because tue place where
they lie used ~ old lines TO be fayorite resort
OF the "porgie' hshernen. no one seems ~ clear
~ know. These whitehall tugs are ever ready
Tor any sort OF job. the captain OF one of
them would not deem himself III for his po-
tition II he hesiiated 10 attempt 10 rush
the Great Eastern about the bay or even
down to the Hook with his ntte boat.
As rule, however cautains Of heavy vessels.
arriving or departing, prefer tn employ tugs Of
sufficient size to handle their vessels with ease
and certainty, 50 the smaller whitehall tugs
generally employed III moving canal boats ana
barges. 1t has been said that some Il the tug
men Of the poreie fleet aro by no means scrupu-
l0us ns to the nature Of their employment, and
that such thing as engaging them TO carry, I'm
der cover OF darkness, load Of silks, cigars or
other dutiabe arti, les, from vessel IN the har-
Dor TO u saIe place ON shore. would not DO i'm
possible. Two OF them being questionsd
this subject by the reporter, replied, Well
when we're hired. we're merely hifed to move
the tug around as our employer tells us LIS
mono OF our business what his objects are so
long ~ we get our nay all right. Besides. were
not Government officers" but zach, upon tho
query being pressed, piled. ] never knew OF
dow could IN
THE SOUND AND RIVER TUGS.
After tue whitehall tugs. less numerous but
much larger, are the Hudson river and Sound
tugs, employed in the moving OF canal boats on
the former and Of barges Oh the latter. which
make W the grand total already stated. There
used TO be two lines OF Hudson river tugs,
bchuylers and Austin's bringing canal boats
down from Albany TO the canal boat docks on
the Il ist river but they got into war OF COM
petition, undei bid each other, and finally one Of
them succuubed. ScbuyleT's was the one that
pyed, ana now enj 4ys monopoly Of this steady
ana, IA ordinarily good times, lucrative branch
vi the business. Bat the competition has cut
down rates nearly, II not quite, nfty per cent.
lhe price now paid Tor towing canal boat from
Albany 70 New York IS So, ana 1t does not
seem probable that this Will bear increase so
long as the existing railroad r causes the
loads To cary grain from the West N figures
which, II they DO not actually underbid canal
transport alton, at least force the reduction Of
The costs of the latter to the lowest possible
limit. Twelve tugs belong to the Schuyler limo,
eight Of which are large. The smallest Of thom
Is capable 81 bringing down IA fleet Of thirty
boats, and one. The largest named the America,
has just brought seYeuty-siX Mt once, From tie
moment theeo tugs brng their numbering
charges down 10 the canal basin, their work IL
done, and sometimes fleet" is roken up
out In the Hudson, It's compOr ent parts being
selected. snatchcd out and hurried Of to Jersey
Cty, the Atlantic docks or any other points
about the city winch may be designated by the
consgnees. All tins active work IS done by tine