The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-01-31
THE ST. rAUh srILL AGROUND.

New York. Jan. S0,-The most concen-l trated effort to haul the big American line steamship St. Paul out of her help less condition on the beach at Long Branch was made this morning, and af- ter two hours hard labor, the work was temporarily suspended on account of the tide
 The attempt resulted in the St. Paul moving very little. The change in her position at the end of two hours, as it appeared from the shore. was not more than live feet. The men in charge of the work of the Merritt Wrecking con- pany are now almost discouraged, for they had depended upon an extraordi- nary high tide this morning. The di- roction of the wind. however, prevent ed the water from rising to the desired height. All the other conditions were about the same as yesterday.
 The wrecking company's men began to make ready to haul on the big ship at o'clock this morning. The two tugs, Jones and Merritt, took up the position they held yesterday-a quar- ter of mile astern of the ship to the northeast on line with her position in the sand. They were arranged in tan dem fashion, with huge hawser lead- ing from the stern of the ship attached to the stern post of the Merritt Off to the port side of the St. Paul was the | tug Hustler with another big hawser. Then there were five hawsers leading from the mort r,1ro ,>ta of il1 | to the kedge anchors in the sand. Captain Merritt gave the signal at 7:30 o'clock, three quarters of an hour be- fore it was high water, and the tugs began to work. They pulled and hauled | without any let up, but the helpless ship | did not give an inch.
 | A gang of men on the ships deck be- gan hauling in on the anchor hawsers | until it seemed as though the giant | ropes, the strongest known, would snap | like cotton thread. But the St. Paul still stuck fast in her cradle of sand, | Some idea may be had of the immense strain on the hawsers used in hauling | at the St. Paul by a big one which now | lies on her deck Worn comparatively | speaking, to a thread. This hawser when l first pressed into the service yesterday l morning was a twenty three inch rope. | It has now been reduced to fourteen inch hawser and consequently is al- most useless. | There was, as usual, crowd on the beach, watching the tugs at work on the St. Paul this morning.
 | The tugs, after they had started, did not let up until the signal to abandon further work was given. The St. Paul | did not assist in the work herself. Her keel, from stem to stern, was hard in the sand-as hard as it ever was.
 The wind was blowing at the rate of six miles an hour. Every effort was made to haul the ship off, but there was no sea to assist the tugs. The ocean was calm. If there had been heavy east wind to kick up swells, the tugs would have succeeded in moving the St. Paul a considerable distance, as they worked harder this morning than they have at any other time since the biz liner came up on the beach.
 It is said now on good authority that the wrecking people do not expect to see the St Paul afloat within a month, although Capltain Merritt said yesterday that she would bid Long Branch goodby this morning This however, was said when the wind had left the northwest and was blowing briskly from the southeast. All prep arations were made then to make a try at getting her off at high tide last night.
 The wind held to the southeast unti 6 o'clock, and then 1t hauled around again ito the northwest, and finally al ' o'clock, high water time, died out altogether The tugs were in the same position that they occupied this morn ing, but they made no attempt to pull at the St. Paul.
 When it came high tide last nigh Captain Merritt had his men tighten III the slack on the hawsers to the kedgt anchors. The ship showed no indica ton of giving to the strain, and the work only resulted in reducing the ssizt of the hawsers. It was them decided tt postpone the attempt until this morn ing. Captain Merritt hoped that tn, wind would then blow from the east.
 The fact that the wrecking peopl, are anxiously whistling for an eas
 wind does not mean that they want {
 gale; for, if a heavy easterly storn should come up now, with the wint
 blowing at fifty or sixty miles an hou
 on shore, it would mean much damag, and possible destruction of the ship
 She is In an extremely dangerous DO sitior in case of heavy storm, al though resting easily now.
 The pumps on board the St. Pau
 are kept continually alt work takinl
 out all her spare water. Only enougl
 will be left in the ship to act as bal
 last When the ship struck the beacl
 she had 1,400 tons of cargo on board
 That has now all been taken off.
 Whether another attempt will be mad tonight to haul the St. Paul off de
 pends upon the weather conditions late . in the day. It will be high tide at . o'clock tonight. The tide this morn : ing should have been higher than a
 any other stage of the moon.
 Captain Merritt in speaking to-day o his efforts to get the St. Paul off. said
 "We are making every effort to ge
 the Sit. Paul off the beach, but the ele
 ments are against us. When we giv
 her up it will be too late for any on
 to get her off
 There is considerable rivalry betweel the Merritt and Chapman wreckini
 companies. The tugs of the latter com
 pany have not assisted as yet in help
 ing to get the ship out of her predica
 ment although they lie at anchor O.
 na, -;J Jo vtyhi1 t1aA ATay