The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1879-05-07
The Wharf Rnis Of New York.


Mr.. Charles III. Farnham contributes
TO Scrtbncr an illustrated account of "A
Day on the Docks in which he describes
cruise along the piers of New York
with one of the steamboat police. OF
this den of thieves he SAYS:
This under side of the city is shadowy
world even at high noon, and its struc-
ture, as well as its seclusion, makes it as
good as y forest for hiding The piles
stand in rows running across the pier, a
stringer or heavy timber lies on top of
each row, joists lie across the stringers,
and planks cover the whole. Thus be-
tween the top of each stringer and the
planks there is quite space, where
boxes and bundles can be hidden. The
under side of a pier can hold a good
s,oop-load of packages, and box on q
strlnger is invisible to any one passing
under the pier, unless he passes very
close to it. There are many miles of
piers about the city, and each pier has a
great quantity of stringers. So here is
vast region of secrecy right under the
busiest part of New York. Many of the
piers are supported on such a dense
forest of spiles that only the smallest
skiff can pass through the narrow, tortu-
Gus openings. Formerly the thieves had
a channel of this kind from one end of
the city to the other, by which they
could travel nearly the whole distance
without showing themselves.
"You see, sir, here are plenty of
chances to hide These cribs of beams
and spiles, mouths of sewers, odd holes
here and there along the rocky shores,
and all of it covered over from daylight,
and some of it almost inaccessible-all
that you would think is enough for any
set of thieves. But it is not; for we fol-
low them up and clean out their holes.
They find new places now and then.
Once we discovered a lot of hardware
and tools hidden under the guards and
in the paddle-box of steamboat that
was laid up for the winter. Many
things they hide under water, such as
spelter and other metals. 1t is almost
impossible to discover these plants"
but sometimes we hit on them by chance
Once man who had been loafing about
the deck of one of the Troy steamboats,
threw overheard valuable hawser, and
then plunged overheard himself before
anybody could catch him. although the
boat and the wharf were full Cf people
Both the hawser and the man fell into
skiff alongside the steamboat and dis
appeared under the pier. He had the
start, and of course escaped before any
OF us could get boat and follow him.
But we heard of him afterward under a
certain pier and we went there to look
for the rope. We dredged between the
piles for three days, and by good luck
hooked up the hawser. These men
sometimes get their desserts without any
of our help. One of them, who had
stolen boat-load Of pig-iron, ran under
Pier 40 to hide. That pier had shaft
and gearing under it for hosting ice.
He hitched his boat, and then
climbed up near the shaft; the gearing
caught his clothes, and we found him in
pieces scattered over his boat. Wharf
thieves used to be more successful than
they are now; they were organized in
regular gangs. But we have broken
them up, scattered them, and driven the
most of them away from the docks.
Still darker scenes might be recorded
of this under side of the docks. The
actors appear first in the city's brighter
haunts of pleasure or in its miserable
dens of want and crime. Then they
wander in the streets alone; and gradu-
ally but surely stray to the water. Night
is around them, in them. The city be-
hind them sparkles with life. But it
cannot penetrate their night, nor light
their dark passage under these waves to
the morgue.