The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-12-03
UNCLE SANS BUOYs.
bow They Are Placed in Position and
Kept There.
Lieut.. W. ?. Lou IN Youth's Competition.


Kept There.
Lieut.. W. F. Lotc IN Youths Companion
All who have visited the approaches to a
seaport town have noticed the numerous
buoys and marks which are placed there as
aids to navigation.
Tugging and jerking at their chains as the
tide sucks in around them, or lying quietly
upon the placid waters Of some sheltered
bay, are black buoys add red buoys, buoys
with horizontal black and red stripes, buoys
with black and white vertical stripes, and
ding-donging bell buoys.
Well OUT to sea lie much larger buoys
called mammoth buoys, gripping the sand
with their iron claws.
Though these marks and buuys may seem
to have been put haphazard here and
there, each has a meaning. The place that
each shall occupy is carefully chosen for lie,
and its arrangement is chosen by q careful
system.
These aids to navigation, which are called
day marks" IN contradistinotion to the
lights and beacons, fall under the jurisdic-
ton OF the light house board.
The coasts Of the United States, includ
ing the lakes and navigable rivers, is di-
vided into sixteen districts. A naval officer
is in charge of'each. Under his direction
all the buoys in bis district are placed
In all the districts similar buoys mean
the same thing, and buoy that has par
tioular distinguishing color on the coast of
Maine hat the same significance II in the
bay of Mobile or of the coast OF Oregon
So the mariner who sails into Boston harbor
is guided and directed exactly in the same
way as be who enters the Golden Gate.
Not only are the oolors and positions of
the buoyS given on the coast survey charts,
but the light house board publishes yearly
list, which is distributed gratuitously for
the benefit of commerce. in which each of it's
about 5000 buoys is located and described.
Coming into port from sea the first buoy
that we pass may be a mammoth buoy. l
say may be, because these buOys are only
used In special cases, such as to mark the
approaches to channels over bars or shoals
that lie at a considerable distance from the
coast. The entrances to most harbors do
not require any such special marks.
The buoys that designate the channel, and
which lie on either side of it, are red and
black. The red buoys, which all have even
numbers must be left on the stsrboard or
right hand in passing in from sea, while
the black buoys, always with odd numbers,
must be LETT on the port hand
In case there are two more channels,
they are distinguished by difference either
in the size or shape OF the buoys
IL there should chance to be an isolated
rock, wreck or any obstruction which has a
channel on either side of it, it is shown by O
buoy pain ted with red and black horizontal
stripes
Buoys with white and black perpen-
dicular stripes lie in mid-ohannel, and in~
dicate that they must be passed close to
avoid danger.
Finally, buoys surmounted by triaugles,
cages ETC., are an indication that there is
a turning point in the channel.
There are in addition to the buoys al
ready mentioned, two other kinds which are
also fog signals. namely, the whistling buoy
and the bell buoy.
The whistling buoy is used off the coast
to mark dangerous outlying shoals of other
distractions to navigation. 1t is surmounted
by locomotive whistle, which is made TO
sound by the rushing through of air ad-
mitted, and compressed by the rising and
sinking motion of the buoy.
These buoys are we'll adapted to turbulent
waters, as the more violent the sea the
louder the sound caused. Like some rest
less spirit chained to the oceans bed, they
can but sadly mourn their fate under smil-
ing skies and unbroken seas; but when buff
feted by the waves and tempest-tossed, they
shrek their lamentations fiercely and warn
the mariner TO beware the spot they mark.
They are not pleasant nelghbors Their
sound Is frequently heard at a distance Of
ten miles, and under very favorable circum-
stances it has been heard fifteen miles.
The bell buoy consists of the bottom Sec
ton Of the buoy floating in the water, on
which is mounted framework bearing a
bell, which, instead of the ordinary tongue
and clapper, has q small cannon-ball sup
ported on platform just underneath the
BELLS mouth. This ball rolls to and fro
with every motion of the sea.
These buoys are used in harbors and
rivers where the water is smoother than in
49, 1ak- - L.
sary that their sound shall be heard great
distance.
Ordinary buoys, not OF the whistIing or
bell variety, are made of either iron or
wood. Those Of iron are hollow, with air
tight compartments, and are of three shapes,
called respectively nun, can and ice buoYs.
The nun buoy is almost conical In shape
tbs can buoy approaches the cylindrical
form, and the ice buoy is very long and mar
row, and resembles the spar buoy in form,
The wooden or spar buoys are sticks rang
ing in length from - to 90 feet, and pain ed
according to the uses to which they are to
be put. The lower end is fitted for mooring
chain.
A buoy has many vicissitudes and Is OK.
posed to many dangers. Passing steamers
run down the iron bueys and rip them open,
OF cut Off the big pieces of spar buoys with
their sharp propeller blades.
AS the iron buoys are made In compart-
ments, they are seldom sunk by such collis-
ion, but their line of flotation Is often so
lowered that they have TO be replaced.
Again, despite the fact that the United
States laws punish by a fine of $1,000 any
one VINO is convicted Of unlawfully injuring
any work for the Improvement OF naviga%
tion-and this in addition to other penalties
provided for by the different states-the
very people for whose benefit these buovs
are laid often unla wfully make fast their
vessels to them, and drag them out Of posi-
ton.
Again the ice, floating down in masses,
parts the mooring chain. or tears the moor
ing anchor from its hold, and carries the
buoy far out 20 seq, TO break upon the hori-
ION of some estonished mariner there.
There is now, or was until recently, a
buoy anchored Off the coast of Ireland,
which made the journey there from New
York harbor in six weeks. When 10 was
picked up off the Irish coast the Irish light
house establishment reported the fact to our
light house board.
Then it was presented to the Irish board
who thereupon added their characteristic
marks TO those already upon it, and moored
it near the spot where it was found.