Morning journal and courier., 1882-01-26
The Persian Monarch's Attempt to Tow in the Steamer Edam.
Losing her in & Furious Sn0Sy Storm i'm the Night 100 Miles from Sandy Hook
 A Vain Search in the Storm. From the New York Sum-

Losing her in a Furious snsw Storm i'm
 the Night 100 Miles from Sandy Hook
 Vain Search in the Storm.
 From the New York Sum-
 Capt. Dunscombe, of the Monarch line steamship Persian Monarch, is rugged old man, with long iron-gray beard. When he brought his ship into port yesterday noon he looked like an ice king, with 8 beard of icicles, an iceberg for ship, and it's masts and rigging of spun crystal. The ice ship passed quarantine in the forenoon, and by o'clock was alongside her pier, near the Pa vonis Ferry, in Jersey City. The tide was so low that there was some difficulty in mak- ing landing, and the keel of the steamship touched bottom.
 When Capt Dunscombe spoke his voice was as hoarse as the west wind in tn rigging of his ship. He had been on deck, he said, pretty much all the time through the storm of the past three days, and had been covered with ice from the freezing spray of the sea In whisper that might have been heard a block, he said:
 q saw the steamship Edam, from Rotter- dam, Saturday morning about Il o'clock, in longitude 68 degrees 45 minutes, latitude 40 degrees 35 minutes The weather was fair, and she was flying 8 signal of distress. I answered the call, and took her tow line aboard with some difficulty. About mid night the wind came up from the west, and the sea was very high. It was almost i'm possible to make any headway. The sea was rising in the morning at 5:30 when the cable parted. Then we lay by and got into com munication again. We steamed around the Edam at daylight and got within fifty yards of her, and took up her line for a second time. It was thrown out fast to drifting buoys, and man from my ship jumped over board to get the buoYs aboard with the line. His name? Blest if know. What of it? He hal and n aboard again all right. Well, the cable broke again We communicated by signals and rockets, and got tow line aboard again This was Sunday morning, and about 100 miles east of Sandy Hook, and we stayed by her until Monday morning between and 5, when she disappeared"
 ''Did she drift away ?"
 'fBlest if know whether she drifted or sailed away A little before 1 o'clock the wind veered to the north, with snow squalls, and we lost sight of her. Standing northeast we saw her green lights bearing east by north. Again we lost sight of her in heavy snow storm. We burned blue light and she answered, and we steered for her, show ing signals, but getting no more answers The gale was furious and the snow heavy, and q mist was rising. At 5:15 we fired a rocket but got no answer, and at daybreak there was heavy mist, and we could not see her. We had taken pilot aboard from Pilot Boat 6 on Saturday, the last on the boat. We con- suited him about the Edam's probable drift, | and steered at first south and southwest and then west and north-northwestward after her till noon in a mist which created a mirage, | and through which we couldn't see more than three miles Our ship was laboring heavily in the sea and covered with ice, the wind blew furiously, and for the safety of our passengers and crew we gave up the | search"
 'FWhere do you think the Edam has got to?"
 ''She was all right, except for having lost her propeller last Thursday. She had gone | under sail until I sighted her on Saturday | morning. After she disappeared on Mon- l day morning cruised about for whole day, but couldn't find trace of her and she'll probably fetch up at Bermuda"
 Capt. Dunscombe was asked if the Edam | could not be found by boats sent out from | New York. 'tIt would be like hunting a | needle in a haystack," he said. 'I cut her l of pretty well myself, and if she'd been anywhere in reach I'd have found her." Capt. Dunscombe secuted tho idea that the l Edam was in any danger. Under sail, he ! said, she would probably be driven to Balti- l If the wind should shift to the east, she 1 might make her way back to this port, or be overtaken by some one of the transatlantic | steamships which are about due.
 At the office of Punch, Edye & Co.,, agents of the Netherland- American Steam Naviga- ton company, to which the Edam belongs, consultation was held when it was known that the Persian Monarch had come in with
 out the Edam. Henry Edye, Capt. Merritt l of the Coast Wrecking company, Capt. l d'Hamecourt of the steamship Rotterdam, and H. Cazaux, general agent of the com pany, met around a table on which lay g l chart. Mir. Edye saidahe had no anxiety for
 the safety of the Edan, but was anxious, on account of her passengers, to have her
 brought in as soon as pssible. He suggested | sending tugs out to meet her.
 | Capt. Merritt said that would be useless. | None of the small towboats would be able to | 20 to sea as far as would be necessary to find | the Edam With the sea high, as it is now, | and the weather as cold, the boats would be | covered with ice and would be almost use-
 less. It was resolved to trust to favorable
 wind to bring the Edam into port and mean | lime to ask Collector Robertson for permis-
 sion to send the revenue cutter Grant, boat
 of 400 tons, out to look for her. The col
 Hector referred MT. Edye to the Secretary of