The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-12-29
FATE OF OLD PILOT BoATs.
Uses to Which the Discarded Yes
sells Have Been Put.
From the New York Commercial Adver.

sells Have Been Put.
From the New York Commercial Adver.
tiser.
When the new steam pilot boat New
York was put in service some time ago
a number of the old sailing vessels used
formerly by the pilots of this harbor were
offered at auction and sold. Although the
vessels cost, when new, from $4,000 to $1S,-
900 apiece, they brought of an average only
about $500 each The vessels sold were
exceptionally well built and seaworthy,
and the persons who purchased them put
them to variety of uses. The Edmund
Blunt went to Montego bay, Jamaica, with
supply of dynamite and other materi-
ais, and has been retained in transporta-
ton service in that vicinity. The Alex
ander M Lawrence was purchased for
service on the Nicaraguan coast and is
being used in the cocoanut trade al pres
ent. The James Carl was remodeled and
made a handsome craft, and christened
the Saxon, and makes pleasure trips from
Newark.
The Ezra Nye was purchased by F. Ma
rion Crawford, the novelist and convert
ed into comfortable yacht She has been
named the Aida, and is now cruising in
the Mediterranean. The America is engag-
ed in the West India trade. The Indian
Prince is in regular service as pilot boat
on the Florida coast The Starbuck is
employed in pilot work on the coast of
North Carolina, her home station being
Beaufort. The James F. Loubat is in Pa
tagonia, and is engaged in the sealing in
| dustry. The Fox is being run between
Florida and the West Indies, transporting
| supplies of all kinds. The E. d. Jordan
| is engaged, for a considerable part of the
year, at Asbury Park, from which place
-f,o % s,.f. On
| the Jersey coast for the benefit Of sum-
| mer visitors. The Actea is lying, a pres
ent, in Erie basin. She was purchased by
| Mr. Phelps, who expects to remodel her.
| The c. H. Martin is now cruising on the
| coast of Africa, and No. II is at the Cape
| de Verde Islands.
| Whether the sailing vessel or the steam
| Fessel is best for pilot purposes is still a
| disputed question but the change is cali
| culated to abolish much of the pictur-
| sequences which attached to the plot serv-
| ice.
| The life of pilot is one of the hardest
| that can be imagined, and the business is
| one of the most hazardous. Capt. Wal
| ter Brewer, the Nestor of the New
| York pilots, wakes eloquent in recounting
! some of his experiences. Tt was Capt
| Brewer who piloted the Star of the West
| on her romantic expedition from New
! York TO Charleston for the relief of Fort
|
| He tells, dramatically, how the start was
made from New York in the dead of night
| all lights on board being extinguished and
| how they got the vessel over the harbor
| bar at Charleston before the confederates
| could be apprised of her mission. Mai
| Anderson, it will be remembered, had
| abandoned Fort Moultrie after spikng his
| guns and taken up a position in Fort
| Sumter, and the object of the Star of the
| West expedition was to put in the fort
| sufficient supplies of materials of war and
| troops to enable Anderson to resist attack
for a considerable period. The buoys in
| the harbor of Charleston had been re-
moved by the confederates, but Brewers
| familiarity with the channel enabled him
| to take the vessel up to within a few
miles of her destination. The relieving
| party, however, could not achieve the aim
| of it's expedition as the enemy, In spite
| of all the precautions taken, got wind of
| the matter, and succeeded in training
| several guns on the steamer, compelling
| her to put back TO New York. Several
| shots from the hidden battery struck the
water close to the vessel, and one shot
| glanced up from the water and splintered
| the planking of the ship This, Capt
Brewsr asserts, was the first shot fired in
! the civil war AS the tide had gone down,
| the ship had a close call in it's efforts to
! get out of the harbor, but she returned
| to the starting point without serious mis-
| has.
Capt Brewer had his worst experience
as pilot some forty-five years ago. He
! started out from Sandy Hook one win
| ter's day with crew of half a dozen
men, including the cook, and lay in wait
! about 200 miles off the coast of Massa-
chusetts for such ocean steamships as
! would need the service of a pilot. After
\ waiting for almost a week without meet
| ing any vessel, except those engaged in
! fishing off the banks, the lookout describ-
| ed British brig. which proved to be the
| Cambria, from Dublin. On approaching
nearer to it Brewers experienced eye
detected easily that she was being ham
died in peculiaE- manner. The mystery
| was explained when he boarded her and
| found that many of the passengers and
! most of the crew were down with ship fe-
| yer, and that the ahle-bodied men were
| too few in number to handle the brig. He
| headed the vessel for Sandy Hook, but the
| wind was against him, and with his limit
| ed crew he was unable to bring her into
| port. He signaled for a tugboat, without
success, and finally saw himself compell-
| ed to let her drift down the coast to Del
aware Breakwater. Meanwhile the pas
| sengers and crew were dying like sheep.
| To add to their misfortunes, the supply
| of drinking water on board was exhausted
almost All that remained was in one cask
| on deck which was frozen almost to the
| bottom The passengers were compelled
to scrape the ice off the cask to quench
their thirst. In addition, after the vessel
! had been anchored under the lee of the
| Rreakwater, some well-meaning person
sent on board a large supply of corn meal.
The passengers, most of whom were Irish
| immigrants, did not know how to cook the
meal. and the new diet aggravated their
| sufferings In an appalling manner Six
were buried on the New Jersey beach, all
having died within the space of twenty,
| four hours.
Fortunately a revenue cutter put in an
| appearance soon after. and sent men on
| hoard TO take the vessel to New York.
! She: Have you seen the minister since
lis return from EUROPE?