The times., 1899-02-18

front to transfer their effects to points dis
tant from the river For some days past
workmen have been engaged in moving
lumber and other property so that now
but little remains in places of danger. 1t
is expected that by tonight everything that
cannot be quickly moved will be secure on
high land. The Washington and Norfolk
Steamboat Company has a quantity OF
freight stored in It's warehouse at the foot
of Seventh Street. but this will not be re
moved from its present location until the
river becomes decidedly threatening. Then
ii will be quickly transferred TO one OF
the company's steamers. which lies at The
wharf ready 10 receive the goods In the
event of the river rising 10 an alarming
extent the boat viii he run out into the
middle of the channel and there anchored
to ride out the food.
At present the owners Of summer eNcur-
sion beats. trading vessels and pleasure
craft which are tied up to the various
wharvcs or anchored in the channel do not
anticipate injury to their property unless
the floor is high enough to sweep across
the Potomac Flats. carrying with it large
Quantities of ice, in which event the en-
tire shipping feet along the river
front is liable to be battered and crushed
by the swiftly moving ice Old river men
feel sure that this will happen if there
is another heavy rainfall within the next
few days.
The Long Bridge.
According TO present conditions, as has
repeatedly been stated. the greatest dan
ger lies in the possibility of the formation
OF an ice gorge at the Long Bridge. The
bridge is supported by numerous piers and
between the piers are a great number of
piles driven for the purpose of protecting
the stone supports of the structure. These
form a network which undoubtedly will
hold the larger cakes of floating ice when
the river begins 10 break up. The large
masses will obstruct the passage of the
smaller ones, and within short time
after the fields of ice and snow begin their
journey down stream a dam is liable to
be formed that will hold the increased
rush of water from the upper Potomac,
backing it up into the streets of Wash
ington. The part of the structure which
spans the Washington channel near the
District shore is even more threatening
than the remainder of the bridge, as the
greater part of it is built of stone, and the
space through which the water passes is
very small. With a small quantity of
jammed ice TO supplement its strength it
would develop sufficient strength to hold
all the water power that -can be hurled
against it.
Another unpleasant feature of the situa-
tion lies in the position of the embank-
ments on which the railroad runs from
the two portions of the bridge and from
the northern end of the structure TO the
Virginia shore. These embankments will
it is thought. act as a dam when the wa
ter rises, making the chain of obstruc-
tions at this point in the stream complete.
The Norfolk and Washington Steamboat
Company's steamer Newport News, after
\ hard battle with the ice of more than
forty eight hours duration, reached the
city yesterday morning at . o'clock. The
officers of the boat say that they encoun-
tered ice all the way from the mouth of
the river. varying in thickness from twelve
10 fifteen inches. The channel is now open
all the way down the river and this Will
il is thought, greatly facilitate the efforts
which are now being made under the di-
rection OF Harbormaster Sutton TO clear
channel CT sufficient width to keep gorges
from forming when the ice finally starts
out. The regular Norfolk boat will make
the usual trip tonight and this will further
tend 10 open up the channel.
Opening the River.
Yesterday afternoon Harbormaster SUIT
ton started with a feet OF three vessels to
widen the channel formed by the Norfolk
boat as far as Alexandria. The vessels of
the feet consisted OF the mail steamer
Estelle Randall and the tugs Edith Win
ship and William II. Mohler, Commodore
Sutton directed the movements of the
EstelIe Randall and Russell Dean and S
T. Lewis, Of the harbor police force. each
had charge of tug The two smaller
boats left the foot of Seventh Street at
about ! o'clock and the EsteIle Randall
about half an hour later. Each boat was
armed with steel ice plow projecting from
the bow. The plow had the effect OF lift
ing the weight of the boat upon the ice
thus crushing il as the boat was propelled
forward. The Randall proved very sue
cessful ice breaker, and surprised many
OF The river men, who were watching her
movements. The opinion was generally
expressed that she could break the ice
nearly as well as the larger and heavier
Norfolk boats. This was in 4 large meas
ure due 10 heavy steel and wood plows.
which Captain Randall the owner of the
boat. had constructed when the ice first
became troublesome in the river. His boat
experienced scarcely any difficulty in max
ing her way through the fields of ice,
notwithstanding the fact that below the
forks of the Georgetown and Washington
channels the ice had gorged 10 a
considerable extent, making it in many
places several layers thick She was not
brought 10 a full stop except in one or two
instances. The plan OF attack was 10 run
each boat far enough into the ice from the
edge OF the channel already cut by the
steamer last night TO allow the PROV
Of the boat TO gain sufficient hold TO keep
her nose in the ice. If the boat ran too
close 10 the channel the edges OF the ice
would keep her in the part where the ice
was already broken and no headway could
be made.
The Randall. being the largest boat was
intended 10 break of large cakes Of the
Elgf l.
Up these large chunks. When the feet
reached Alexandria Commodore Sutton
found the tug Minerva with steam already
mp and q crew aboard. He pressed the
boat into service. and she made one trip 10
Washington and return during the after
noon. besides helping in the work between
the forks and Alexandria. The Randall
made the first round trip in about fifty
minutes, breaking each time about twenty
feet OF ice from the channel already
formed
Immediately upon reaching the wharf
at the foot Of Seventh Street she went
back to Alexandria, where she stayed the
remainder OF the afternoon, breaking the
ice in the main channel below the juno
tion Of the Georgetown and Washington
streams. The tugs were kept in the vi
cinity Of Alexandria widening the main
channel, and did not return until O'Clock
Particular pains were taken in clearing
the river below the forks as it is the de-
sire Of Commodore Sutton to remove as
much as possible the danger of the forma-
tion of a gorge opposite the mouth of the
Anacostia River.
Great Progress.
A strip 400 feet in width was broken
here. while in the Washington channel a
breadth of 80 feet was considered suffi-
cient. Commodore Sutton stated that he
had never seen the ice in the river as bad