The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-12-31

fage Done
hip.
3 + y 4 Dec. 81. 1S92.-The
3 :: {bria. for the safety
passengers and crew
< n hsions have been felt
+ L dropped anchor at
f 'clock this morning
N again for her pier
Il T. 1sighted shortly after
y E Island.
|| Il Scotland Lightship Mt
# s 4. ssed Sandy Hook at 7.20.
= ri II 9rI under her own steam,
e X her broken shaft at sea.
e: | into port by the White
3 tannic and an oil tank
the most perilous passage
q rs lnarder across the Western
+ llling one, A flaw Id her
In discovered by her engineer
~ by of last week. and the big
ichinery broke down about
In the evening Friday, week
Fas then little over 500 miles
r IL port.
f.. had been stopped twice during
n 10 that the final catastrophe did
Use the passengers.
was blowing at the time, and
N(|+ fsvy sea was running, but oil bags
fnng over the bows, and the vio-
the waves was thereby greatly
3D..
NO PANIC.
ire was no panic on board. the
Fances of the officers that there was
Immediate danger quieting affairs.
ft daylight Saturday morning tho
Phemia. of the Hamburg-Ameri-
line, eastward bound. came
long and promptly responded
the Umbria's request for a tow. A
steel hawser was taken to the Cunarder
aud the Bohemia got under way, the gale
4 growing more severe every hour
A snowstorm added to the difficulty of
navigation, obscuring the lights of each
vessel to the vision of officers on the
bridge of the other.
Shortly after midnight Christmas
Hmorning the hawser parted and the Bo-
hernia abandoned her efforts to tow the
AUmbria.
1t was estimated that the Bohemia had
towed the disabled steamship about
seventy-fve miles,
The Manhanset was spoken Tuesday
morning, as told yesterday,
The Cunarder Gallia, from Boston, ap-
pearlng at the same time. No aid was
asked of the former, and the latter. to
surprise, refused to stand
Last Tuesday morning the weather
broke fine and the sea was comparatively
smooth. This condition continued to the
md OF the voyage. The engineers took
Dronapt aa EaHtage of the laIl and pushed
Fhe work OF repairiug the broken shaft.
THE SHAFT REPAIRED.
This completed the big ship again
Started, and proceeded at slow
tate of speed, and completed her
Voyage without any further disa-
gfeeable incident A reporter boarded
tAe Umbria when she arrived at
Quarantine Captain Mckay was on the
bridge, busy with his duties. He found
time. however, to make cheerv reply to
the congratulations of Health Oficer
jenkins on his safe arrival In port. and
shouted down:
"We were never worried a minute.
We were in no danger at any rate. The
ship was at no time in an unsafe condi-
tiou."
Purser Field said:-
From the time of the break on Friday
until the following Tuesday gangs Of
men In relief were constantly at work on
the break, which was mended as rapidly
as possible Then we got under way
again slowly, and averaged only 9L knots
an hour for the rest of the voyage.
Pilot boat No. 81 came in sight last
Tuesday and pilot came on board bring
lug New York paper reporting the I'M
bria as overdue, but stating that no par
ticular anxiety was felt regarding her.
This cheered the passengers very much.
Our daily runs were 228. 405. 420. 800.
124. rs. AZ. %, 159, 224, 25S and 1853 miles
respectively. The small runs were, of
course. the distances we drifted. we
have 131 saloon, 1873 second cabin and l21
steerage passengers.
For the last few nights the officers
have had little sleep, but otherwise
everybody Is well. Frequent concerts
and entertainments were given to while
away the hours we were Obliged to Law
to-"
Of several passengers interviewed none
mad any tales OF excitement or panic 70
relate. They were all unanimous in ex-
pressions of delight at getting into port.
had proven very tedious.
A second cabin passenger said that
when the shaft broke the shock knocked
the crockerv off the tables. which had
just feen set for dinner, and naturally
there was an incipient panic. but it was
soon quleteo py the officers, who ex-
planned that there was no danger
LITTLE DAMAGE TO THE SHIP.
Beyond the breaking of her shaft. the |
Umbrla sustained damage whatever
aud did not app a. have had |
E particularly rough time of it.
stantly, before the pounding of the |
broken shaft had done any damage. |
The break occurred in the thrust shaft, |
or that part nearest the engine. and |
while 1t was very serious, would have |
been worse had 1t occurred near the |
screw, and then 1t would have been |
impossible to repair 1t at sea-
Where the shaft broke it was 26 inches |
in diameter. It split clear through. slick
and clean. transverssly, SO as to leave a |
bevelled edge on each fragment It was |
repaired with big circular clamps, always |
Carried for just such an emergency.
Inc cause Is believed to have been the |
repeated dashiDg of heavy seas against |
the screw after the latter had been lifted |
out of the water by the waves.
The repairing of the Umbria's shaft |
was pronounced by the passengers a |
ttriumph of the engineers art.