The evening world., 1894-06-02
WILL LIBEL THE TUG HAODON.|
Her Captain Charged with Ma
liciously Ramming the Pratt,
Damage Done to the Latter Cannot
Yet he Estimated.

This Is the most piratical act I ever
heard Of in these waters" said Mr..
Stewart. OF Stewart & Macklin, attor-
neys, of the Washington Building. this
morning.
Mr.. Stewards firm is retained by Capt.
l.. F. Bloodgood. who Is the owner OF the
tugboat John T. Pratt. The Pratt took
a hawser from the Nova Scotian bark
oh Kim Soon, off Sandy Hook, yesterday
morning. after Capt. Sucker, command
ing the tugboat Robert Haddon, had
failed to make a barsAin to tow the
bark to Quarantine. and had steamed
more than a mile away, thus abandoning
the bark.
mo sooner was the hawser straight
ened out and the nose Of the Pratt
pointed for New York harbor. than
the Haddon returned and threatened
to sink the Pratt unless l let go the
hawser." said Capt. Eamis.
Il declined to do so. and Capt. Sucker
ran the Haddon In between the Pratt
and the bark and cut the hawser. Not
satisfied with that, Capt. Sucker ordered
full speed and rammed us five times.
The Haddon Is much larger than the
Pratt, and the only wonder is that she
w had twenty-five tons Of fresh
water aboard. which, as the Pratt is
only a s~ixty-one ton boat, set us pretty
low in the water.
However. l stuck to the bark and
towed her to an anchorage off Quaran-
tine"
Lawyer Stewart stated h he called
up the Myers Excursion. and Towing
Company. the owners Of the Robert
Haddon, this morning and asked them
what they proposed to do about It.
rnrttnotaI NNa 90 slala az q ,1V
until they received a report from Capt.
SUCKER, Of the Haddon.
We declined to do this. however"
formal complaint and report with the
Board of Steam Inspectors. If the
Myers people do not make overtures 70
which cannot be estimated now, we
shall libel the Robert Haddon.
All the evidence showed conclusively
that the Pratt was rammed maliciously,
propose to have the guilty parties pun,
lshed and force those responsible tc
repair the damage" .
Owner Bloodgood, of the Pratt, could
not estimate the damage done. He
states that the injured deck. timbers
bulwarks and forward house must be
cleared away before an estimate can b'
made. The Pratt cost $4,000.
Pilot Petersen boarded the oh Kin
Soon of the Jersey coast, and started
to beat in by the Hook. He is very
ciittli 10 " tlt IdilllhlhB VI Tic Iidt'
by the Haddon.
He would not say that the Haddon de.
nberately backed and went ahead al
full speed. striking the Pratt amidships
time after time, but he admitted thai
the Haddon struck the Pratt at an angle
repeatedly and bumped her heavily.
This, he said, was very dangerous ir
the heavy swell that was running. es.
pecially as the Pratt Is a much smalle
boat.
He said that Capt. Sucker did every
thing he could. to keep the Pratt iron
towing the bark.
Capt. Morton. of the Oh Kim Soon
condemns the conduct OF Capt. Stuckner
He says he offered the latter the usua
towage fee. which was declined. TIL
Haddon then, steamed away, and tn
Pratt came along and accepted the tow
Pilot Petersen came up from the an
chorage ground on the Pratt. but de
clares that he did not Examine the dam
age done.
1T was o n OF my business" he said
II went into the pilot-house and stage
there until we locked. Capt. Eamis toll
me the Pratt was very badly damaged
but really I knew nothing about the ex
tent of It."