Telegram-herald., 1889-09-19

1T - life OF danger and very poorly
paid, said Captain Reinhart. The
married have practically 10 keep two
a0mes Of their little wages. Tor they
have 20 ind their own food here al the
station. Their quarters are furnished
and the Government allows Us g. per
month tor the keep OF horse, and sup
plies US With our fuel. Then, while the
hrst uniform is supplied 20 Us. We have
TO paw for all tho others. and a. we have
to keep TWO suits, II is rather expensive.
The swo cost me about go and The men
about $40. They consider IL q great
hardship"
Docs The Lyle gun ever fail you.
Captain"
"Well-no. It Is the best projectile
yet devised OF course il does not
throw line very far. only about $50 or
| 500 yards. but IL throws IL very accu-
rately and that is great thing when
| Afe fs at stake. You see, the vessels
that come ashore generally come within
reach Of the Lyle gun. unless the coast
/ be a rocky one, and then | doubt
whether any projectile would reach
| them. The only case where the Lyle
failed 10 help Us, was that Of an ocean
steamer. which went ashore on a sand
! bank of Amagansett, some four winters
ago. and stuck there till the wreckers
took her of next day She was never
/ in any serious danger. The gun failed
to reach her, for she was 700 or 500
yards out from as.
I'VE have tried the Fletcher rocket
three times within Che last few months
right here on this beach, twice at Far
/ Rockaway and again where we stand
and / cannot say that IL comes up to the
| Lyle, either for accuracy or utility. !
can fire a line ten times straighter with
the Lyle. Besides, the Fletcher rocket
is too cum bersome TO take on she cart
and IL you shoot it and miss-which you
| are very liable 10 do--you have nothing
| left but TO stand and see the wreck 60
TO pieces, unless you have another
rocket and two would be fearful load.
| On the first two trials, the rope line was
burned, and such an accident. when you
are trying TO reach a sinking ship,
would be something dreadful. II can
shoot about 75o PAGES with number 9
line, while the Lyle can send a No. Z
line 45o or 500 and a 30. Q, about 400.
! The new rocket is a steel chamber
capable of resisting pressure Of forty
tons TO the inch A compound Is used
instead of powder. The day rocket has
two metal rods behind the chamber and
fsse. and on these rods the nne is ad-
iusted- The night rocket has the same
chamber as that for day use, but instead
of the metal rods il has metallic buoy
or float and at the end is torch which
ignites on striking the water and keeps
burning a considerable time. The line
h fastened near this torch and that is
probably how il came TO be burned at
the trials | have referred to. Those
trials were private affairs and not
under Government auspices in any
sense"
AS the writer left, the old Captain
was standing on the shady porch OF the
Life Station, scanning the windy hori-
zon. in an attitude such as might have
been assumed by Vanderdecken on the
poop of "Das Fliegende Hollander." e" his
long beard grasped in his hand, while
the stiff breeze sang and whistled about
the building and shrieked between the
tall poles that stood in front of the
station, from which are hung the night
signals to distressed vessels out at sea,
DAVID WTCHsLER