The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-01-30

HARD AND FAST.
Steamship St. Paul Not
Moved by a Whole
Fleet of Tugs.
AAVSERs WON TO THREADS.
The Big Steamer Can Not help,
Her Keel is So Deep in
the Mud.
RAWSERS WON TO THREADS.

q
NEW YORK. Jan. 80, 1Ss6.-The most
concentrated effort to haul the big Am
erican line steamship ST. Paul out Of her
helpless 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. Pau
moving but very little. The change ir
her position at the end of the two hours
as it appeared from the shore was not
more than five feet. The men in charge
OF the work for the Merritt Wrecking
Company are now almost discouraged
for they had depended upon an extraor-
dinary high tide this morning. The di-
rection of me wind, however, prevented
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 quarter of a mile
astern of the ship to the northeast on
line with her position in the sand They
were arranged in tandem fashion, with
huge hawser leading 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 an
other big hawser. Then there were five
hawsers leading from the port quarter
deck of the ship to the kedge anchors in
the sand.
Captain Merritt gave the signal at 7:3(
o'clock, three-quarters of an hour before
it was time for high water, and the tugs
began to work. They pulled and hauled
without any iet-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 snar
like cotton thread. But the st. Pau
still stuck fast in her cradle of sand.
Some idea may be had of the immenss
strain on the hawsers used in hauling al
the st. Paul by big one which now lies
on her deck worn. comparatively speak
ing, to a thread. This hawser when first
pressed into the service yesterday morn
ing was a twenty-three inch rope II
has now been reduced to a fourteen-inch
hawser and consequently is almost use
less.
There was, as usual, 4 crowd on the
St. Paul this morning.
The tugs, after they had started, die
NJ ngt let up until the signal TO abandor
could not assist in the work herself. Hel
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
wind to kick up the swells, the tugs
would have succeeded in moving the ST.
Paul considerable distance, as they
worked harder this morning than they
liner came up on the beach.
1t is now said on good authority that
the wrecSing people do not expect to see
the ST. Paul afoat within a month, al
though Captain Merritt said yesterday
that she would bid Long Branch good
by. this morning: This, however, was
west and was blowing briskly from the
southeast All preparations were made
then to make try at getting her off at
high tide last night.
s o'clock. and then it hauled around again
to the northwest. and finally at O'Clock
The tugs We're in the same position that
they occupied this morning but they made
no attempt to pull at the. st. Paul.
Merritt had his men tighten up the
slack on the hawsers to the kedge anc-
hors. The. ship showed no indication of
giving to the strain. and the work only re-
suited in reducing the size of the hawsers.
It was then decided to POSTPONE the at
tempt until this morning. Capt. Merritt
hoped that the wind would then blow
from the east.
The fact that the wrecking people. are
anxious1y whistling for an east Wind
does not mean that they want a gale:
for. If a heavy easterly storm should come
up now, with the wind blowing at fifty
or sixty miles an hour on shore, cit would
mean much damage and possibly destruc-
ton to the ship. She is in an extremely
dangerous position in case of heavy
storm. although resting easily now.
The pumps on board the ST. Paul are
kept continually at work taking out all
in the ship to act as. ballast. When the
ship struck the beach she had 400 tons
of cargo on board. That has now all
been taken off.
tonight to haul the St. Paul eff depends
upon the weather conditions later in the
day. It will be high tide at eight o'clock
tonight. The tide this morning should
have been higher than at any other stage
of the moon.
Captain Merritt. in speaking today of
I'VE are making every effort to get the
st. Paul off the beach, but the elements
are against US. When we give ner up it
0ff!l %ill be too late for anyone to get her
There is considerable rivalry between
the Merritt and Chapman wrecking COM
panies The st,lg tngs s. Of the latter +, company
though they lie at anchor on the ST.
Paul's port side, while e., the Merritt TUGS
say that they had the first line to the dis
abled ship, and will demand some pay
ment for keeping their tugs at the scene