Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-25

rt Consists OF s,sooooo Feet Of Timss~ ca
Was lowed Prom New Brup.wisk.

It Consists Of s.soo.ooo Feet Of Ttwn,<~ a.
Was lowed Prom New Brup.wisk.
The largest raft ever constructed las ,uss
been towed 10 New York. having left 81 johns
harbor on June rs. IL is several hundred feet
longer than the famous Joggins raft. los, q. sea
in December, 1857, and which for months
drifted about the ocean. q constant menace 10
vessels- II h in three sections Its length h
]. 100 feet and the distance from the tugs 10 the
rear end Of the last section was 800 fest
In towing the sections were separated te.
feet There were sixteen sections or cigar
shaped cribs" averaging ffty-hve feet in
length, forty feet in thickness latsrslly, and
nineteen feet in height
The raft contains some 10000 pieses 90
sticks" OF spruce and pine timber from forty
i've to seventy feet in length, together with
great quantity of beech, birch and maple tim
Der, making a total Of 3. 500 0o0 feet
ihe diameter of the sticks runs from twelve
ihches 10 thlrty-five inches at the butts, and
from SIX inches 10 ten inches at the points.
some OF the largest sticks Of Norway pine
"elgh ABOUT three tons each.
ne estimated cost OF the raft to its owners 10
SfV,uV he contract price for towing was
Sf,op exclusive OF the cost Of the hAwsers Its
value 10 estimated at $50. 900.
IN ronSh nsures the quantity OF timber con-
tanned In the raft lie reckonsd M tifty s.choone,
n
loads or 1000 car loads.
Owing to bad weather and fog the progress
OF the tow was slow. The most serious troubls
occurred Sunday, July ~. ten miles outside OF
breaker after breaker fell VIOLENTLY upon he
raft. The man whose duty IL vas 20 light the
lamps swinging from the tripods ON tie raft
could not perform his task.
thirteen Of the cribs parted and were tossed
ABOUT as though made of cork. Fortunately
the gale and high did not continue the
parted section was recovered and after n de-
lay OF two days the RAFT resumed its course
There was more trouble the next few days on
account Of fog.
Finally on SATURDAY.. July 4 Co,t.ve C,sx
Was reached. The wind was blowing q gale
and 1t was thought advisable to anchor there
New shackles and other repairs were needed
After bobbing around at Cottage City all day
sunday and Monday the strange sea traveller
resumed lite journey Tuesday morning, July z
Ihe next morning the raft anchored OF Dutch
Island Tor repairs to the chains and left there
thursday evening. July =, but had to put back
on account of heavy seas
Another start was made at midnight satur-
gay, ana yesterday morning ate O'Clock the
great raft was seen rounding 1hroe's Neck and
soon came 20 anchor IN Flushing bay
There were eleven DAYS of actual towing. and
the average speed attained against head tides
was one mile an hour. and with fair tides about
three and one-half miles an hour.
The building of the great raft was bepun 4,
tDa 81 John river between st. John and Fred-
eiicton October 4, $780, and was completed in
May last The cribs were built on the ice
ABOUT Georgetown. Each crib has q strong
chain iald Iengthwlse IN the center Of the
timber, the whole being firmly secured on The
outside by binders of heavy wire rigging.
onoer and around each crib is a one and three
quarterback chain with q half hitch over the
top and at the middle Of each CRIB, the chain
also siretched from crib to CRIB, thus giving
q frRFn
yentlye against conclusion
The cribs are coupled together much the
same as railway train and the whole structure
was SO designed that in case of necessity one
section could have been cut adrift without
losing the whole.
One hundred men and fiftv borso. x.r. Avn
pioyed In the work of cutting and transferring
tne umDers from the forests TO the 'cribbing
ground: Temporary frames were built Of
Tour siiis with posts mortised into them end
securely braced. The logs were slid on skads
into the frames, and after being secured die
frames were taken down.
The object of bringing timber to New York
IN tins manner Is TO get the longest and largest
LOGS since vessels trading in Nova Scotia cam
not pilng sticks exceeding siXty-five feet In
length. Those OF greater length come from
Ancnigan and Ohio by rail, which Ia eypensiye
transportation, three or four cars are neoes-
sary to carry them. The present raft has been
brought Tor use in ship-building and in the son.
struction of docks and piers.
our unqualified success in bringing TO New
iork the biggest raft ever foated without los
ing stick, said the constructor of the rafS
VIII cause a revolution in the me .hods OF trans
porting lumber. L shall look forward 70 the
day, not far distant when lumber will be lowed
from the north shores Of New Brunswick 70
Liverpool L can't see how any further i'm
provement can be made in the construction a
rsfts except by increasing the strength Of tAs
chains and wire cables"