The Portland daily press., 1884-12-24
MOUNTAIN OF WATER.
An Immense Tidal Wave Rolls In
to New Haven Harbor.
RUCKsPORT sCHOONEB DRIVEN
ASHORE.

New HAVEN. Conn, Dec. 23.-Last night, at
II o'clock, as Capt. 8. P. Thrasher, superin-
tendent of the Seamen's Bethel. was lacking
up the building preparatory to going home, he
felt distinct jar of the earth. Looking out
he saw lamp posts shaking. The shock was
even more severe than that ex perienced here
last summer. The jar was felt at the central
police station also. 1t is now believed that
there must have been a convulsion of the
earth in Long Island Sound, directly off the
hsrbor or near by, for at quarter-past eleven
tidal wave, crowned with foam and fully eight
feet high, came rolling into the bay from the
south. traversing the entire length of the har-
Dor, which is four miles long. 1t had speed
of about IL miles an hour, and moved with an
ominous rushing sound, like the blast of hur.
ricane carrying destruction in It's path It was
very dark and cold at the time, and light fog
was forming, which has been growing denser
ever since; consequently it is impossible to as
certain the full extent of the damage done.
There are 200 vessels in the harbor, bound
eastward. The first one to take the force of
the wave was Capt. Horace Dodge's schooner,
Nellie Grant. bound from Jersey City with
coal, to Portsmouth, N. 81. She is high
bowed craft, and therefore did not shin The
force as to tear the windlass out of her and
part the chains on both her anchors sweeping
her away to the north. Capt. Dodge hastily
rugged sail enough to keep steerage way on
her, and managed to pick his way through the
feet to the inner harbor, where she is now re-
pairing
Astern of the Grant lay the schooner Ernest,
Capt Darius b. Reed, Providence vessel,
bound home from Hoboken, with cargo of
400 tons OF coal. The Ernest has crew of
fOnF nd %E.ao 1fo fn1a g..
board. Capt. Reed was on deck when the
mountain of water struck his vessel. He was
greatly alarmed, aud realized that unless the
ship parted from her anchors she must 81 ak
The anchors held, and the wave swept over
her, clearing the DECK tearing off the matches,
and bursting into the cabin. The heavily
loaded vessel began to sink Immediately, and
when her deck was level with the water Capt
Reed hastened his crew into the yawl boat
Just IS they got clear of the schooner. she
went down in three and one-half fathoms of
water. They reached the schooner Luly
Thompson, Bangor vessel, where Capt. Reed
and his sh1vering vile and crew were cared
for during the night. Today they were taken
In chareelby =. ii. Weaver, agent for the un-
derwriters. The Ernest lies directly in the
channel aud will be easily raised She was
partly insured. The craM lose everything.
Tc the eastward OF her, in Morris Cove Law
a tow of four heavily loaded barges, belonging
to the Bee Line Transportation COMPANY of
were raked from stem to stern by the sea, and
one of them, the Bouquet, Capt Hill, foun-
dered and sank. Her crew managed to escape
in their night clothes just as she was going
down; they saved nothing. The remaining
barges are ba1ly damaged. The Bouquet ad
800 tons of fine coal on board, and lies in threa
fathoms Of water She can De raised. Her
value is placed at $4,000.
On the west shore Of the channel lay thu fine
three-masted schooner Jason P. Davis, Capt
Rosster, of Buckspoft, Me. She was light and
was swept by the wave nearly aquarter of
mile like a cork, aud now lies stranded on
Sandy Point. The Davis is 800 tons, and near
~ new. She can be fioated off with pontoons
She is comparatively uniDjured Many other
vessels were badly shaken aud strained by the
wave, but the thick weather, preventing the
movements Of tug boats has cut off all means
of communicating with them. Up the harbor
the wave overturned small boats, parted the
fastenings of vessels and did some damage to
the property of the New Haven Yacht Club
An omlnous find was made at Morris Cove,
near the easternmost point of the harbor. It
consisted of an overturned yawl, quantity of
sailor clothing, splintersd spars and loose rig
ging, and 80 matches swept from vessels decks
by the waves. 1t is now feared that other dis
asters have occurred