Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1900-02-21
NOTABLE WRECKS SAVED
Evidence Of Development in Saving
Stranded Vessels.
Steamer Milwaukee Was Cut In Two -Floated
and New Bow Built - How The Liner
Paris Was Saved.

and rebuilding in maritime history is
represented by the reconstructed
steamer Milwaukee, which was turned
out in the summer of 1899 at the yard
of c. s. Swan & Hunter, at Wallsend-
on-Tyne, Eng. The Milwaukee, a vessel
of 4S3 feet length and Sc feet beam
went ashore near Aberdeen in Septem.
Der, 1898, huge rock penetrating the
hold for length of thirty feet and tc
height of eight feet above the tank
top. When the salvage operators saw
that 1t would be impossible to save the
entire vessel, 1t was decided to blow
her in two with dynamite. This was
done successfully and $50 fcot of the
fore-end was left on the rocks while
the after end was towed to dry dock.
To sever the steamer. successive
charges Of dynamite were applied, each
charge being distributed over length
ranging from four feet to six feet, and
the charges varying with allowance for
the thickness of the steel plates to be
severed. Such was the quality of the
steel, however, that more than $40
pounds of dynamite were utilized. De-
spite the heavy charges exploded; how
ever, none of the parts of the structure
adjacent to the belt of cartridges was
seriously damaged. The saved portion
of the vessel depended for flotation,
until placed In dry dock, upon a trans
verse watertight bulkhead at the for
ward end of the boiler space. The
saved portion extended from just be-
fore the forward end of the navigating
bridge to the stern. the engines and
boilers being thus preserved. 1t was
towed to the Tyne and moorsd in the
river until a new bow was built,
launched, and made ready for connec-
ton to 1t. A remarkable feature OF
the removal Of the after end Of the Mil
waukee was found In the fact that II
was towed with the bulkhead end FORE
most. and that the tugs were assisted
by the ships own engines. Her build
ers set about reproducing a facsimile
of the lost bow; so well did they sue
coed that person ignorant Of the facts
would never know that he was not
looking at the original bow.
The success of Hamburg salvage
in floating the American
liner Paris, stranded on the Manacles
rocks near the entrance to the English
after British firms had aban-
doned the attempt, has very naturally
caused an immense amount OF COM
ment. The whole effort of the British
salvors was to pull the vessel off the
rocks by means OF tugs assisted by
the steamers own engines. The inspec-
ton made by the divers disclosed the
l.In nh> N..,A IxtA h. Ill
teen feet in size had been made IN the
vessels bottom by great pinacles OF
granite, which had penetrated her out
er shell about midships under the first
and second boiler rooms. The Ger
mans early decided to abandon the
plan of the British wreckers. Instead,
they adopted the plan Of blasting away
the teeth of granite which held the
liner.
Before. this could be undertaken It
was necessary to do an immense
of patching from the bow aft
to the midship section, and the steam
er's bow was lifted out of the water by
adding weight to her stern and filling
her after compartments with water.
The danger of injuring the vessel re-
stricted the size of the blasts, but in all
more than $1,000 cubic feet of rock
was removed; moreover, this was all
done under water. AS rapidly as the
bouiders were detached, hawsers were
made fast to them and they were
out Of the way by the wreck
Ing steamers.
Difficulties of the greatest magnitude
presented themselves when the work
had advanced to the point at which II
became necessary to blast away the
last pillar OF granite holding the Paris.
The steamer had been filed with wa
ter flush to her depth Of fifty feet, in
order to raise her bow, and, inasmuch
rs her own pumps could not cope with
This, holes had to be cut In her decks
md sides in order that a powerful
steamer might lie alongside
md suck out the water ballast. AS the
'essel righted, the rush of water tore
tut some of the compartments and the
engine rooms were inundated and the
furnaces submerged. Scarcely had she
been righted and her engine rooms
out when gale sprang up
which opened her seams and allowed
her to fill again. To steady her dur
ng the storm and prevent her being
lriven farther on the rocks, anchors
we're carried out from the bow and
tern on both sides, and the chain OF
he anchors kept taut by means of
team winches on the deck of the YES
el. When the gale subsidized, the boat |
lad to be pumped out again and con-
iderable additional patching done
The patches utilized were formed of |
hields of wood, fitted over the breaks |
nd padded around with canvas and
ubber. Some of the shields were as
arge as the door of a house. The ac-
ual releasing Of the vessel was accom-
lished by setting in motion the steam
yinches connected with the chains of |
he stern anchors while the three
,recking steamers united simultan-