The San Francisco call., 1896-07-25
INCENDIARISM
ON THE 'FRONT.'.
Three Fires on the Hay
Wharf Inside of Seven
Days.
TRAFFIC rs BLOCKADED.
Hay Merchants Think Tramps
Had a Hand in the Vari.
Gus BlazeS.
WHALE-HUNTING EXPEDITION.
Governor Budd and Party Expect to
Kill Mammal Off the
Farallones.
wHALE-HUNTING EXPEDITION.


City front for week past and consider
able damage has resulted. The prlnclpal
losers have been George Morrow & Co.,
Somers & Co.. C. S. Healy, j. S. KIM
ball & Co. and Meyer Bros.
The scene of operations has been the
hay wharf at the foot of Third street. ana
many of the sufferers state openly that
the fires have been started by men who
expected to benefit by the misfortunes OF
the owners. Directly the fire in the hay
is put out the chief wharfinger notifies all
concerned TO move the stuff at once. If
the orders are not obeyed it is loaded on
scows and dumped in the channel at the
owners expense. In consequence, wbe
fire is started on the hay wharf traffic in
the vicinity comes to standstlll until the
damaged hay is removed by any one whom
the hay and grain merchants can get to
cart it away.
Within week there have been three
fires on the hay wharf and the loss has
been very heavy. Last Saturday there was
an outbreak and one of the biggest stacks
on the wharf was ruined. On Wednesday
another alarm was turned in and 1T took
the Fire Department and the State fire
tug half a dav to put out the smCldering
mass. Last Thursday night another fire
broke out and considerable damage was
done. Morrow & Co. think that the fires
have been started by tramps who make
their beds IN the hay every night. "Doz-
ems of them sleep on the wharf every
night" said George Morrow yesterday.
when they feel like smoking they smoke
and the hot ashes dropping into the hay
sets the whole mass on fire."
Traffic on the wharf has been stopped,
owing to the manner in which it is Uttered
w IA lf-hn
Scows laden with the feed cannot dis
charge, and in consequence the channel is
blockaded. By noon to-day it is expected
that the wharf will be cleared and COM
merce will again move on.
The Stockton rate war is in full swing.
When the California Navigation and I'M
provement Company cut rates to % cents
it had everything its own way for week.
Yesterday, however, the Union Transpor-
tation Company turned the tables on them
by cutting the rate to % cents for the
round trip. In order to secure the low
rate for the voyage 70 Stockton and back
the passenger has to go up on the evening
boat and return on the one that leaves
Stockton the following day. Last night
there was not great increase in the
| traffic.
The Union boat carried q number of
| extra passengers who were attracted by
| the cheap rate, but the Navigation Com
| pany held its own and went away with its
4 steamer crowded, as usual. The fignt is
| bound to be bitter one and the chances
are that the travelling public will be able
to get to Stockton and back for 10 cents
| before the month is out.
The Mail Company's steamer China has
| been docked for a general overhauling.
Before sailing for China again she will be
| cleaned and painted and her interior will
be disin fected. This will be done in order
to clear the vessel from any lurking germs
| of disease that may be aboard.
The rumor about the mail steamer San
Juan has been explained. One OF the COM
pany's small boats ran on the rocks near
| ManZanillo, but was got off and towed to
| Panama. She will come here for a gen.
eral overhauling and In the meantime the
| San Juan will take her place as an inter-
| mediate boat.
| Farallones next Saturday. 1t will be
engineered by T. G. Wills of J. c. Kim :
| ball d Co., and among the guests will be
| Governor Budd, Harbor Commissioners
Colnon, Cole and Chadbourne, Colonel
Nunan of Stockton, Com modore Bruce of
the San Francisco Yacht Club, Judge
Hunt, eX-Director Lawton of the Mint,
| William Greer Harrison and a dozen
others. The party will be limited to
! twenty-one and they will go out on the
| Spreckeis' tug Fearless.
Besides the Fearless the steam schoon er
| Noyo will also go out and take about fifty
passengers. 1t will ostensibly be fishing
excursion, but the two steamers will look
for bigger game. The Fearless will take
out two whale boats, full whaling outfit
and two crews headed by Captain 81. M.
Gregory. The idea is 10 capture gray
back" whale near the Farallones and thus
give all and sundry chance of seeing, on
a small scale, what is done IN the Arctic.
Captain Gregory is an old whaler and
knows exactly how to go to work.
His men are all expert boat-steerers and
hunters, and they say there will be no
difficulty in capturing a whale-maybe a
sperm.
In order to guard against accidents an
extra boat will follow the two that are to
do the work and an extra captain will go
out with Dan Haskell on the Fearless, and
there will be no less than three shippers
on the Noyo.
The excursionists expect to have merry
time. There will be band aboard, and
on Saturday night next the two steamers
will anchor in brakes Bay. At daybreak
Sunday morning the hunt will begin, and
according to Manager Wills, the cry,
There she blows" should be heard be-
tween 10 and IL o'clock. Jack Gavin, the
boat-header, and Antoine Lorienz, the
boat-steerer, are Doth confident that they
will run across whale between the hours
named. Should one be captured, it will
be towed to San Francisco and placed on
exhibition at some place to be selected by
the captains. All the money obtained
from that source will be turned over TO
the carnival committee.
The British ship KilmaIlie arrived from
Antwerp yesterday, after a long trip of 155
days. Like the other overdue vessels that
reached port, she was caught in heavy
gale in latitude 56. 40 south, longitude IS
west, and the waves that broke over her
did considerable damage. The captains
gig was washed off the forward house and
one of the lifeboats out of the davits. The
cabin was flooded, and almost everything
movable on deck was washed overheard.
Louis Smith, aged 8 years, is missing
from his homea 40 Minna street, and the
Harbor Police are looking for him. The
lads father told Captain Dunleavy that
his son went down to the front to look for
firewood at A. NJ. Thursday, and that he
has not been heard from since. Just what
has become of the boy no one seems to
know, but his father fears that he has
been drowned.
Tried to Sell Unstamped Opium.
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