The Portland daily press., 1876-09-25
The Great Explosion
"a Success.
THE DANGEROUS REEF BE.
MOVED.
No Damage to Property.

American army engineer, were all completed
Saturday night to the minutest details. The
cautionary advice to all interested was rigidly
observed such as the vacating of domiciles in
close contiguity to the reef and houses even at
a considerable distance while doors and win
dows were left invitingly open for sneak
thieves in Astoria. The General, however, had
arranged for soldiers of the regular army and
ing was left to the peculation of thieves.
The horse cars that run from down town in
this city to 23d street ferry station were more
than crowded from noon till o'clock. The
steamboats, which were to convey the invited
guests of Gen. Newton, of the mayor of this
the commissioners of emigration, all rendez-
voused at 23d street, East River as we'll as the
U. S. officials who were transported thither
upon the city police boat Seneca by the invita-
ton of the police commissioner. The agent of
the New England press was the guest of the
emigration commissioners on the trip up the
river, and of the police commissioners and the
mayor of New York on the return, Secretary
Chandler and Collector Arthur also offered all
the facilities in their power to the New Eng
land press.
Quite large number of invited guests were
present upon Wards Island, which is to the
northward and eastward of Hallett's Reef The
high hills on the New York side of East River
and the streets and avenues were literally
black with people, reminding many military
peOpl6 pT66tuI VI Iu0 appearance OF d6GLySDurS
Heights Just before the great battle of Gettys-
burg.
The programme of Gen. Newton as to the
guarding of the river was carried out to the let.
ter. Steamboats, under his orders were sta
toned at points within a radius of three-quar-
tiers of mile east and west of the reef to
prevent any vessels from approaching within
the supposed danger lines. There were some
two dozen steamers loaded to their guards with
people which were within safe sight seeine dis
lance OF the doomed reef, while the government
scow which has for 80 many months done duty
at the reef was anchored between Wards
Island and the New York shore with the family
of Gen. Newton and several distinguished
American and foreign engineers and army and
naval officers and friends. Lining the shores
were quite large number of yachts, steam
launches, row boats, club boats, racers, dories,
shells and dingies filled with adventurous oars
men and risky families of the traditional New
Workers, who would almost welcome eternity
in accomplishing sensational sight seeing.
There were at least from the stand point on
Wards Island from 100000 to 25O, 900 people
who awaited the touch of the electric spark to
the grand battery.
At 225 o'clock the first warning gun was
fired and the great crowds then began to fully
realize that the DEGREES of regular army Off
Ger OF the United States were something to be
depended upon. The second gun resounded as
was previously announced, and it was accom-
booming from the ocean over Long Island with
downfall of rain and mist that was upcom-
Portable in the extreme. The grear crowds re-
NAMED immovable. only watching more intent.
~ the bomb proof and the Golfer dam at Hal
let's Point, lest there might be pi emature
explosion and they would not be prepared for
it,
There was not boat to be seen within the
prescribed limit. The Dogberry police even
insisted upon the thousands of people on
Wards Island keeping rigidly within an i'm
aginary line drawn from where the favored
police commissioners stood toward the brick
hospital of the unfortunate insane. The still
ness was certainly oppressive between 2.40 and
ESQ O'Clock and was only relieved by the awful
and soul narrowing shriekS of the half dozen
female lunatics confined in the asylum, who
had been worried by couple of inconsiderate
women and the usual thoughtlessness of New
York crowd who had flocked to the barred but
open windows of the asylum. The police soon
drove away the alleged sane intIuders. 1t was
noticed that the houses at Astoria on Ward 8
Island and along the New York shore had
their hundreds upon hundreds of windows
thrown open. The steamboats, had all their
boilers SO arranged that any undue atmospheric
disturbance should not disarrange their equili-
brum. There was general observance Of all
precautionary measures suggested by General
Newton, in whom all seemed to place implicit
confidence.
Mayor Wickam this morning early went to
Wards Island and remained there to assure
the inhabitants that there was no danger and
bis example had most satisfactory effect.
Commissioner Isaac III. Bailey and other mem.
Blackwells Island. In both instances the ex-
amples of both had the effect to prevent an
anticipated panic. The occupants of the ms
titution at the easterly end of Blackwelrs Is
land were removed between 2 and o'clock to
the western end of the island, and the uniform
of the New York OOinpmon w wiz Of oil
points. At Astoria Sergeant Whltcomb, form
erly of Boston, was in charge of the police de-
tail and connection with few regulars and ma
rines, prevented any intrusion upon the domain
of Gen. Newton.
At 2.30 o'clock a solitary u. s. marine in a
blue overcoat with his bayoneted rifle at the
shoulder, paraded before the bomb proof with
in few yards of what has been known as the
heading of the main shaft to the honeycombed
reef. He was shortly after withdrawn, but
performed his duty during the next honr
as if on common daily tramp back and forth
at his accustomed barracks.
The suspence between 2.40 and 2 50 was a
thing almost felt. At last the third gun re-
sonantly echoed among the islands and sullen.
woods of Long Island. Watches were imme-
diately produced and field and opera glasses
were levelled toward Halletts Point. The
seconds were counted. Fifteen seconds went
by and several hasty. people exclaimed in an
undertone: ut is too bad for Newton, the bat.
terry has failed himr' Five seconds more of
suspense, when there was suppressed rumble.
an exclamation of '"There she goes" "Bully
for Newton, and the crowd of refined gentle
men on Wards Island, headed by His Honor
Mayor Wyckam and the police commissioners,
paying no heed of the officious policemen rap.
idly walked nearer the edge of the water.
The scene was one never to be forgotten.
The elevation on Wards Islands, where spec
tators were standing was perhaps some fifty
feet above the hight water mark: The glass Of
the writer had been vigorously kept upon the
cotferdam. When the rumble commenced
there was seen first in the centre where the
heading of the mine was located, beautiful
white spray that lifted itself into the air $50
feet in a jet not unlike the spray thrown up by
geysei spring, supported on each immediate
side by vouminous sprays of an hundred feet.
These again hanked by smaller sprays upshoot-
ing from fifty down to ten feet in height. The
body of water thrown up was very heavy, al
though not apparent at the moment extending
1850 feet from the shore. The area of dstur-
bance extended evidently over three to five
acres OF surface and that amount of water was
lifted bodily into the air. The defamation was
at distance of $50 yards from which it was
viewed by the writer, and resembled the sound
OF park OF artillery of six-pounders on mill
tia training day. 1t was Just as Gen. Newton
said it would be and the fears of many that
SaSAo "ooio Uo lcuutub wave WHICH WOuIQ De
dangerous to those standing within ten feet of
the surrounding shores, were not realized in
the faintest degree, as the effects were thus not
dIscernable at Wards nor any other island,
nor on New York shore. Indeed small dory
with two adventurous fishermen who slipped
the Gordon of the government steamers, was
not half as much disturbed as by the swash of
tug boat The poor emigrants were imme-
diately sent back to their hospitable domiciles
and every one felt relieved.
The moment that the explosion was
an accomplished fact all the steam
whistles on the river were opened and
their shrieks of rejoicing were heightened in
noise by the unearthly howl and wall of half a
dozen lunatics who shouted in the chorus from
the open windows of the insane asylum. Not
a glass was broken Cd any Of the outlying and
contiguous islands, not even nervous woman
was Frustrated, by the reverberation or
rather two reverbrations for slighter one on
t9e extreme chambers followed. The first ex-
ploslon was felt and heard il this city, even to