Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1882-12-12
DANGERS ON THE HaR,

DANGERS ON THE BAR,
4 very exciting incident transpired
Yesterday morning JUST after daylight
en- TIE Colombia river bar. The nag.
hificsnt steamship Columbia had Just
passed tbs stu burning light on Caps
disappointment and was being borne
over tns bar upon the rolling pillows Of
& nowlng tide. The decks we're thronrad
with eager and hopeful passengers. who
Wers casting curious and longing giances
towards the dimly seen shores of Wash
ington and Oregon. The infowin9 tide
vas rolling IN heavy Rroundsweil over
the bar, while upon the right and left
the snow-white breakers seemed to be
engaged in p fierce battle, their snow
white lines of foam rusttag forward
Ike long lines OF opposing battalions to
meet each other and scatter, fall and
disappear In the shadowy morning
mis.s. In the dim distance within the
line of restless breakers feet of loaded
merchantmen vita prows pointed sea
ward roll at anchor waiting for a favor
able breeze with whica to fill their can
vass wings and pass out 10 sea. Upon
the bridge" amidships, just abaft the
feremast. stood Capt. Bolles, glass in
hand, anxiously scanning the surround
ings. while just in front of him and Just
over the pilot house stood Herb" S:eph-
ems, the veteran pilot of the Columbia.
Two tugs, the smoke of which had been
seen in the distance for nearly half an
hour, were rapidly approaching the Col
umbia, which kept the center of the
channel and was rolling forward a: a
rapid rate of speed. The first tug-the
name of which was not distinguishable
from the deck of the steamship-weut
past the Columbia with a compliment lry
salute from her whistle. The second
tug, which proved to be the Pioneer,
was following the first, and appeared to
be under full head of steam. She was
about five hundred yards in the rear of
the first tug when che suddenly altered
her course, pointing her prov directly
towards the Columbia. "Where is she
coming to!" said Captain Bolles to the
pilot, Herb" Stephens. II don't know.
Give her whistle to starboard," replied
the pilot. Captain Bodies stepped back
to the whistle cord and blew two distinct
whistles. These whistles we're answered
by both tugs, which were rolling fear
fully in the heavy swell. Instead of
keeping off to the right in response to
the signal given and received, the Pho
neer turned to the left and attempted to
cross the bows of the Columbia. MY
God.' said the Captain to the pilot,
mean?" Hard aportr shouted the
pilot to the man at the wheel, as he
stamped with anxious rage to and fro
aport. port. port! Throw her over quick
60 jyuf oh taft
Boiles, as the majestic steamship bore
down with her sharp iron stem directly
and apparently upon the little tug,
which, now broadside to the Columbia,
seemed to be rolling helplessly in the
swell of the sea. 1t was a thrilling and
exciting moment. The crowd of pas
sengers which had blackened the fore
castle of the Columbia rushed pell nell
back amidships to avoid witnessing
what appeared to be a catastrophe. Four
of the passengers rushed to the port side
to look down over the steamships bows
to see the sea-deomed men ON the tug
go down in the foaming waters. The
tug seemed to disappear for a moment
beneath the bows of the Columbia and
those who had seen the danger held
their breath for moment in anxious
suspense, awaiting the shock of the col
lisiOn. The tug passed diagonally across
the prov of the steamship, which Just
grazed the round part of her stern. The
water cast up by the bow of the Colum-
bia struck the tug with sufficient force
to throw its stern around and the two
vessels passed each other with not more
than one foot of space between them.
AS the tug bore away, breasting the high
waves, toward Cape Disappointment,
Captain Bolles gave vent to his just in
dignatiOn in an interrogatOry salute
which was more emphatic than polite,
in which the men on the Pioneer were
asked what they meant by such conduct,
and whether they wanted to go to u
place much warmer than the bar at the
mouth of the Columbia? No reply came
from the five or six men on the tug, who
less than minute previous were virtu-
ally "in the jaws of DEATH" Turning to
Councilman Hewett, one of the owners
of the tug, who was on board of the Co
lumbia, Capt. Bolles remarked: "Hew-
EFT. would not have given You two bits
for your boat two minutes ago." II
would have taken two bits for her Just
then" replied Mr.. Hewett. Various
conjectures and theories have been adj
vanced in explanation of the conduct of
the captain of the tug. Had the signal
to pass to the starboad been responded
to, this conduct might be explained as a
mistake; but there could have been no
mistake in the signal, as the tug itself
whistled in response to the Columbia
and then bore down directly in the
course of the latter. Had the collision
occurred Gas it seemed almost inevitable
that it should do many valuable lives
would most likely have been lost. 1t is
needless to say that the crowd of pas
sengsrs which stood and waited for the
apparently inevitable collision we're in
tensely excited for some time after the
danger had passsd.-Portldnd Standard: