The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-04-11
THE iMERTQUE AFLOdT
How the Great Iron steamer Dragged
from the sands at senbrixht

For three months and throc days tho great
iron steamship Amcriuuc lay on the sands OF
Scaliri.,nt hclch cN posed to the full fury Of the
winter storms Now she Is anoat in the Erie
Bias. H. South brooklyn. whore she is to 90 into
dry dock for examination to-day. Her officers,
and those Of the Coast Wrccking Company. are
Iu5iant over the SUCCESS Of their great under
takius. and all unite in praising the untlrlng
efforts Of Capt Merritt 10 whom is owed the
preservation OF the ship. lie talks little. but
every lnuancnt uf his face expresses gratfcA-
ton. and he says that the moment when she
noat'd was the pruulcst OF his lie H. has not
lett the ship Siur shr was first placed IN ms
charge. Plot Weaver also sought his long for.
snkru home last nignt. uitrr having cOmulet II
his allotted task and brought the AmcrIuc
The Amcriqur went ashore on Sunday morn
Ing. Jan. 7. h'iorc Daylight II r. pass nscrs
wrr" all saved, tut turHc ui the crew w'r"
Tn" Coust Wrcrk n; Company took charge nj
her the next dHy. and pluri ~ ~ ui thr,t men
on board, commando uN Capt MERRITT. Ih.r'.
added to I c"rrw of I'll ship. " lo r'manmi on
board. made toisti of seventy ilV" men. Thry
have worked m rs-uuiN ever ne Tor IN" sui
walton ui thclr ship. They have encountered n
their exposed tuatiou the most we're storms
OF an unusually hari winter. When ON the
point oi IN e'css they saw their labor brought to
ntuglt hy at rrihlf gale. and th" ship PLACED IN
u worse pos on tnan before, but they began
again. rclud their Er'W hawsrrs, hove on
her az every nIgn tldp. ANA iuullN tlirN move
hrr on Dur n every norin"nstrly or SOUTH
eust'rly flow since the vessel went ashore she
mas been moved Little, tut never more than
eighty icct at At time. until ON Monday evening.
Wicn there wis u tremendous sea driven ia 10y
From 3 o'clock until of that afternoon she
was moved foot 10y foot until twenty fatnouis
slack of the great hawsrrs had been coiled on
deck. All might tn gr'ui Or aSers dushed over
shcrt OF ionm. AT 4ociork Yesterday morning
thc udr was nEun hieh. AMI the Murk OF hrhv-
luz ON the haws'rs WIS sun"d. The great
snip moveds owy but SLY. Tor She lay in four
teen ie.t oi water Sh irlls after 7 o'clO X Sine
suiionlvsl d quietly ntotw ntv-'our feet 0t WI
t.r. amt. to the surur So ut tvtryhudv ON board.
was found 10 b' afloat. The u-huat Relief viii h
h been within si-ualiug distance OF the
stranded shlp ~ b n r she went ashore. was
returned. accompanied hy Two other tusbuHts.
u IN they AMI thr Amrr.uue were gayly deckcd
" ill-- and strenmurS.
The araat hnwseis low which she had been
dragged from her sandy bed w'rr cast over
board To h' r"oVrr"d al some future time, tue
long diSusrd rev churn"d the water into
iotm. the tu-s strained at the cables. and. stern
foremost amid the cheers of the hrOng upon
the beach and the srrccchins NJ steam Whist, =.
th" huge ship moved slowly away Before the
bar MS rru'h"d two of the stout manila cable r
hnd parted unier the strain and been replaced
by others. just u1 the bar the position of the
tuss WIS reversed. and the shlp turned around.
From Tins point =h" proceeded bow foremost.
AMER st"aming slowly up the bay and through
th' NlrroNs. saluted ~ hcr sister ship, the 1t.
Laurent. ami ty many other passing steamers.
she VIZ. about sunset, placed safely alongside
If one Of tue piers = the Erie Basin. when
his duties were over Pilot Weaver was almost
sp'rrhl"ss for. the Amrr.que be- NJ rudderl' ~.
pee Had been obliged o. steer her by shout ng
hls orders from her deck t. the TUGS
The Fi"n h flag wis flung t. the hrec2e yes-
uruay IRON the roofs OF many of the Long
Branch hotels from the piers and boats Of the
Coast Wrrch ns Company. and those OF The
COmp1gnie TRANSPLANT que. and from the nasts
of many of ne " s-.i~ Is NJ in the lIors shoe.
Amcrluup.