The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1884-08-07
\ WRECK FISHERMAN.
The Method OF Operating in a
Peculiar Industry.

Peculiar Industry.
How Veteran Diver Searches for and
Finds Lost Vessels.
Capt. Thomas A. Scott, of New Lon
don, the veteran diver, who worked on
the schooner Teazer in New Haven
harbor, last spring, says the New
Haven Register, is a wonderful man in
his business. and carries on the largest
individual wrecking concern in the
country. He is large. genial, daring
person, and one to whom the incessant
dangers of divers life are fascinating.
Wherever a wreck occurs on the coast
from Martha's Vineyard to Barnegat.
the gallant captain is generally called
in counsel, and he never gives up a
wreck when there is any chance of
raising it. And when the veteran
wants q bit of recreation, as it were, he
takes jauEt over few hundreds of
oyster land under the Sound, looking
after stars-down, not up. His inves-
legations in these great oyster gardens
are very satisfactory to oyster raisers'
They are able to ascertain just what
condition their crops are in.
Captain SCOTS latest task has been
the locating of the barge President,
containing Al tons of block tin and 900
tons of steel wire. This cargo was en-
route to New Haven from New York.
where it had been reshipped by the i'm
porters, and was in charge of the New
York Lighterage Company. The Presi-
dent was being towed in company with
other barges, and it is believed that she
struck a rock off Penfeld reef, near
Bridgeport. Captain Scott was offered
$4,000 to locate the vessel, the value
OF its freight amounting to very large
figure. His fishing for her has
been conducted on very extensive
scale. Search for the vessel was begun
off Southport, nearly three miles from
shore, and at first clean sweep of the
bottom was made toward Stratford
light, one-half mile in width and six
miles in length. Two tugboats, the T..
A. Scott and Alert, schooner, five
small rowboats and Is meu, together
with several miles of stout lines, con-
stituted Captain Scott's fishing kit.
The sweep was made by tie tugs sta
tloneu no'f . mile apart and connected
by hawser with pendants anu hunys
alternating so that the line was kept
close to the bottom, while the tugs
moved very slowly forward. 1t re-
quired Is days of this kind of subma-
rine surveying before the sunken barge
was discovered, and then it was found
Il miles off shore and miles from
Penfeld reef, far away from the ap-
proximate position pointed out to Cap
tain Scott During the progress of
this gigantic fishery Captain Scott
found sunken schooner with load of
scrap iron of Southport, the timbers be-
ing almost eaten away by worms; then
he found barge loaded with coal, bear
ing south southeast, three miles from
Southport, and close by another schoon-
er loaded with stove coal. Several
days afterwards, he came upon wrecks
of three vessels laden with coal, close
together, and still later, schooner
laden with water pipe II fathoms
down. Capt. Scott personally inspect
ed all these wrecks and took down
their bearings for future reference, and
may possibly fill Up slack spell in
bringing some of them to the surface
A dinner kettle was found on the galley
stove Of one of the schooners, just as ii
was left, and full Of young growing
oysters.
Captain Scott says his business Is
dangerous, but it pays. He has lost
but one man, and that was his son
who was drowned while working or
the wreck of the Narragansett of
the Connecticut river in 1880. HI
takes all risks himself, and never ask.
his men to go where he dare not. A
difficult job suits him, because there's
more headwork and more money in it
The greatest depth Captain Scott has
successfully worked in is l03 feet. HI
has worked at depth of 80 feet fol
several hours on sunken sloop al
Bristol ferry. At the time the English
steamship Scotland went down of
Sandy Hook, Captain Scott was EN-.
ployed by the government to clear the
channel of this dangerous wreck so well
| huOW IL W lilo w 40 III 1OOc,
and two years time was necessary in
which to tear the vessel in pieces and
remove the cargo. He was under
water 300 hours altogether at work on
this task. While at work on the City
of Columbus, which was lost recently
off Gay Head. he experienced rough
weather, and his air supply pipe became
entangled in the chains of the wreck.
The air was cut off for moment, but
the kink in the hose was found in time
to prevent serious results. He says
that when under water he would as
soon have hole punched through the
top of his skull as through his helmet,
for. in such event, the water would in
stantly expel all air from his suit, and
by its pressure from his lungs also.
] Tho busipesa cappnt ha followed nv