The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-05-22
NINE TONS IN ONE BLAST.
a Column OF Water Thrown a ThOus-
and Feet in the AIR.
From the San francisco Chronlcle.

From the San Francisco Chronicle.
Shag Rock. a menace for years to bay
navigation, was blown out of the harbor
and off the chart at 1903 o'clock yester-
day afternoon. Nine tons of nitro-gela-
tine l. ased into thirty-four holes, each
nine riches in diameter and extending
straight down into the little islet some
80 feet blow the surface, was the tremen-
douS cower that rent the mass asunder
ard directed a mighty column of water a
thcussni feet in the air.
The sight was ore to impress even the
most stolid of witnesses. Warned of the
hidden force about to be let loose, all
Mariner Of craft kept a mile and a half
away from the innocent fifty foot spar
that stuck up at an angle as though 1t
were the dlsmantled mast of some sunk
en- ship. Even the barge from which the
current was TO flash the spark into the
hldden rock drew back and back until
she lad paid cut more than mile of ths
small electric calls. Then the tugs slipp-
ed away from her and swung round into
position with bows pointed in the direc-
ton whence they had been led to expect
he onrushing wave following a gigantic
uphsaval of waters.
Without wan ng, almost without sound,
there rose from the unruffled surface of
ish mass Maiesically it mounted still
higher and CHER while two great literal
flaments Ike cropping ostrich plumes
broke away ana fell gracefully out from
the rising column that III for an in
slant reseubled a fleecy fleur de lis. Still
the huge jet ke1t rising. Thin there surg
ed up from b. meath through the whole
lower part for several hundreds OF feet
a yellowish cloudy tint that blended into
silvery whiteness above For a very small
part of a second the tower stood as If
crystailized, and then it dropped as swift
ly as it had ascended and as noiselessly.
Fifty feet from the sea IL finally spread
out umbrelawise In a dirty coffee colored
fountain that spisshed up the surround
ing muddiness and created for just a Sec
ond or so a dusty haze over the spot
where Shag Rock had been. The whole
spectacle lasted not more than a dozen
seconds.
As there had been only a strange oni-
nous 'whoof" when the water leaped aloft
so there was scarcely a commotion as it
returned to the hay almost in time TO refill
the vortex that it had created There
were no outrushing billowy wave no
threatening concentric series Of waves
AS soon as the thing was dcne the boats
that watched the explosion from safe dis
tances bore down on the scene-a small
feet Of row-boats, fishing beats with sails
hastily sst, four steam tugs, smart sail
ing yacht, a dingy schooner, and three
gasoline launches-all converging upon
the half acre of wTeckage and yellowish
scum where 1t was expected there would
be myriads of dead fish upon the surface
Except for porpoise or two and a few
rock cod no dead fish were to be seen
but here and there great bolted timbers
the size of telegraph poles fioated in
pieces, torn and twisted ana violently rent
asunder as by lightning
Contractor Axmann believes that the
explosion was a success and congratulates
himself upon the favorable conditions of
the weather and the tide. AT the outset
there was some lay at the rock while
William Brawley, an electrical expert,
tested the wires connecting the caps. This