Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-02-18
CUTTING A CHANNEL
Norfolk and Washington Boats Break a
Way.
Tugs at Work-Hard Passage Through
the Icc-A Thaw Look
ed For.

The ice situation shows marked i'm
provement.
The steamer Washington, Capt Tulle, of
the Norfolk and Washington Steamboat
Company, which left Norfolk on Sunday
morning at o'clock, reached her dock at
this city at 3 o'clock this morning. 1t was
a desperate trip, but the stout ship never
behaved with greater credit than during
this trying trip. Mr.. John Callahan, SUI
perintendent of the steamship company,Was
on board and Mr.. John II. Trower, chlet
engineer of the company, with Mr. Sullivan,
chief engineer of the Washington, held
forth in the engine room Capt. rule was
in the pilot house from end to end OF the
trip. The Washington was forced to break
ice every foot OF the way from Norfolk.
The bay is frozen in and the tough SAT-
ice made progress slow. The ice was heaNy
from Norfolk to the mouth OF the Potoilac,
and there the real work of the Washington
began The run to Cedar Point was mace
under difficulties which only those on poaIu
could appreciate. From Cedar Point up tiie
ice varied from twelve to fifteen lncheS
thick and was very hard. In some places
it was much thicker, but the average Was
about fourteen inches. Capt 1ulie saiu
that in all his experience and he had seen
half a century of service, the present was
the greatest ice age within his memory.
A Hard Trip.
description of the trip. He said that there
was no tug in the United States Whicn
could have come to Washington until after
a. pat tn had been broken by the steamers
of the Norfolk and Washington Company.
The Washington, he said, was one oi t sns
best ice boats in the country, am her
officers had had considerable previous eA-
perience Of running in ice. This con,
trituted to the success of their run
to Norfolk. Superintendent Cai1a EaI nan
ordered the Norfolk, Captain GeoS-
hegan which has been lying at Washlng-
ton since the freeZe-out, to get under way
and make Norfolk soon as possible.
She left at 1 o'clock yesterday afternoon,
ard the sisters of the fleet met at l O'Clock
this morning off Fort Washington: Ihe
Norfolk had consumed half DAY IN
reaching fifteen miles down stream: stream. IRON IRON
Fort Washington down the Norfolk found
an open channel, and she would reach
Norfolk early today. The WASHINGTON
found an open channel from Fort Wash
hundred tons of freight from southern
points for the north, the Washington ran
down to Alexandria to discharge local
stuff. The steamer shows her struggle
with the ice. especially on her forward
plates. Every inch of paint has been
ground off nearly to the waterways, and
the iron plates of her hull are FURNISHED In
some places by cutting through ice.
Tugs Mt Work.
The tugs Key and Mohler began yester-
day TO open q Cndulel lFoHl man
at the foot of South Capitol street, to the
reduction works near Belleview. Their
work was painfully slow, Notwithstanding
that a path had been cut to Alexandria
few days ago by the propeller Norfolk, and
a cut had been made by the ordnance tug
Triton from the navy yard to the main
channel. These tugs are pounding away at
the ice today, but when they will be able
to move the scows of dead horses which
are lying at Mann's wharf is beyond a
guess. 1. is thought that the Baltimore
tugs Hercules and Vulcan will be here to-
morrow or Wednesday.
The ice is dsintegrating slightly because
of the comparative warmth and sunshine.
The Norfolk and Washington steamers
will hereafter run on their regular
schedule.