Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-02-21

At about noon yesterday each river
man who had interests OUT heaved
great sigh of relief. The worst was
over and breathing spell-the first for
about sixty hours-was theirs to enjoy.
In one instance, however, the result of
the breakup was not very encourag-
ing. AS chronicled in the Register yes
terday morning, three OF the six loaded
barges in the John c. Fishers tow were
carried away from their moorings a,
Bloch's landing. They did not get far,
as they grounded on the beach not FAR
below the point from which they start
ed. At p. m. all three were under
water.
The Fisher has been playing in hard
luck all along. 1t will be remembered
that she was the last boat OF the big
coal feet to pass this point. The sharp
ice, Of which the river was full at the
time cut up the bows of the front
barges Of her tow so as 10 make 1t
necessary to put in at Bloch's ana
beach the tow to keep it from sinking.
There is but one barge of the tow IN
fairly good condition, it being necessary
to keep the pumps working on it almost
necessarily to keep her on the surface.
There is large force of men at work
doing all that is possible to save what
ever they can out of the wreck. The
tow is the property of the Jenkins Coal
Company, Of Pittsburg.
At 80 a. m. yesterdgs the ice above
the wharfboat let go. Thanks to the
three or four days thaw, the ice was so
rotten that it had no very great force
| behind it. 1t crumbled on the least OBJ
struction. At the wharf, the wharfboat
and the steamer Lexington had hardly
any trouble in holding to the bank.
When the gorge broke the marks reg
istered II feet inches. Five minutes
after the marks showed feet, a drop
of three feet in about as many minutes.
All day long, and especially at the
dinner and supper hours, the bridges
were thronged with interested specta-
tors watching the ice run out.
The creek ran out for nearly its
whole length about a. m. The ice off
Bellaire began to move slowly about
l d. m, but it was not until $50 that it
finally let go. A general footing of all
the steam whistles in the vicinity gave
warning of the breakup. The Charon
ferryboat and other craft about Bellaire
and Benwood are all safe. Indian run,
Whisky run, McMahon's creek and
other smaller tributaries in this vicinity
were running out heavily all during
the afternoon.
The Queen City rode the ice very cas-
lily at her mOoringS at Bellaire during
the breakup. Capt. Bob" Agnew said
she never stretched a line" He is
very well pleased with the ice harbor
afforded at Bellaire. The boat was TAX
en- to Heatherington's coal works dur
ing the afternoon to coal up. She will
make this point to leave here this
morning at 10 o'clock for Cincinnati
The beat is so heavily braced and plat
ed that it will take very heavy ice to
drive her in in the future She has a
large freight consignment which the
company is anxious to get delivered
The G. L. & w. transfer boat Lizzie
Townsend left her moorings at West
Wheeling yesterday afternoon and went
up through the flowing ice to the top
mill, where she picked up one of her
barges that was lying there.
After the worst of the ice passed the
Tom Dodsworth, which was lying at
Marietta with her tow, set out for the
southern market. River craft of all de-
scription at Padden's, Stewards, New
port and Ravens Rock, were reported
all safe.
At 10 D. m. the tow boat Relief pas
sed down on the way to Blochs to help
the John c.. Fisher raise the sunken
craft at that point.
The barge of coal that was abandoned
on the beach at the water works. in
Martins Ferry, by one of the fleet just
before the river closed, broke loose last
night and was carried by the swift cur
rent broadside onto the center pier Of
the Union bridge. The force broke the
barge in two and it went to the bot
tom. 1t contained about $4,000 bushels
of cCal. loss of about 81 300 in the
cargo alone.
m.-The ice has been much heav-
Ter since o'clock last evening than