The San Francisco call., 1898-07-02
.K...LIONDIKERS MAKE TROUBLE
 Free Fight on the City .... of. Dawson.
THE VESSEL IS ATTACHED
BUILDERS REFUSE TO GIVE UP
 :. + :. :. WITHOUT FULL PAY.
. A Rumor That the Big Raft on Its
 '.. F.. : Way Here From Astoria Had .:..=:. ..s Been Wrecked Proves to : .. .:=<.. :. =. Be Untrue.

There was the livelfest kind of row at Howard-street wharf on Thursday night over the possession of the new steamer, City of Dawson, recently built for the Yukon and Northwest Trading Company by William Birch & Co.
 The contract. called for the boat..to be completed. on May 1, but it was not f1h- ished until June 2S, so the. members of the company through their attorneys, Reddy, Campbell 6S Nelson, refused to pay the balance due on the boat, about S500Q. On Thursday afternoon MT. Birch, accompa- nied by half dozen sturdy watermen, :, took possession of the boat without. going through any. legal formalities The att torneys for the: stockholders heard of this proceeding, and in :.. turn sent Thomas Keogh with gang of. men to capture the boat: A tug. was brought up to the dock entrance to tow the boat: out into the channel but it: was found the way was obstructed by, heavy hawsers, so the tug was dismissed. At intervals. all night there were battles for possession between the rival parties. Sergeant Flanders and a squad of men from the Harbor Police Station were sent down to keep the peace and had their. hands full: As soon as one party would board the vessel the oth- CTS would attempt to eject them. and blows were. freely exchanged. A second attempt was: made to: tow the vessel out into the streams and. the stockholders
 
 ropes, but a heavy wind sprung up and the tide was running so strong that the fight was declared off and. both parties rested. i..a,: :,: ,> >.:
 Early yesterday morning the fight was resumed, first one party. having the .ad- vantage and then the ...other. Finally Birch's men got out the anchor chains and moored the vessel Ito the piles. 4 blacksmith was sent for and he made the chains fast to the vessel so that it was impossible to move her. Then attach hGpro n til and everything OH her was .plaStered with them. Finally every body. rested on their oars and the matter is now in the, hands of the attorneys representing the :.con=
 Meanwhile the. .passengers on. the. stean- CT Dirigo were clamoring to :: get away: Their tickets called for a passage:to 10aw- son.. and they didn't care: what. boat took them so long as they got@there. T.. H Baumont went to Kimba1l" x Co., 9owll- CTS of the Dirigo, and demanded his $50 back, but was refused on the grouhds that the steamer was. going sto sail immedate- ly. Then kimhall &: Co.,. made :afrange- ments with the -Alaska-Y ukon Transpor- tation company to :contect with their steamer James Eva at St. MichaelT aTic with that understanding the Dirigo was got ready to sail. Then the passengers began to kick again. because some of:tnem were taking along @ couple of tons of freight and there was no guarantee. that Finally the matter was straightened out and late last night the Dirigo got away.
 Three of the passengers of the Dirigo did not depart without interviewing the 6heriffs representatives: In fact nearly his entire force must have been on duty on the City of Dawson and Dirigo. Wil- liam Grant forgot to pay Mrs. M. E. Dougan, 238 Kearny street S250. and lie had to find the money before he. was allowed to leave for the Yukon. He paid up $l00, and while he was hunting. up his brother to get the other $50 he lost his yalise. No trace of it could be found. and he had to sail for the Yukon with out it.
 At an early hour this morning the trouble broke out afresh, and Officers Me Grath and Dillon descended on the steamer and arrested "Bogfe' O'Donnell. a well-known priZe-fghter, who is one of the gang employed by Reddy, Campbell & Nelson. He was taken to the Harbor police station and charged with using vul- gar language and exhibiting a deadly weapon in a threatening manner.
 The big raft that left Astoria last week Is expected here to-day or tomorrow. On Wednesday last the steamer Umatilla passed through a number of loose logs and lumber. The conclusion arrived at was that it was the deckload of some lumber schooner. and when the news spread along the front many people came to the conclusion that it was the raft. Captain Cousins, of the Umatilla, how ever says that he passed the raft off Crescent City on Thursday, and that it was then all right. Only one tug had hold of 1t, and the supposition was that the other had run into Crescent City or some other port for supplies.