The San Francisco call., 1904-12-31
Blow, but
Little Damage
Is Done.
Barge CdpSiZeS,
ThPOWingC Crew
in the Bdy.

Storm signals and a scurrying for
shelter Of the fleets of small craft and
fishermen's boats yesterday morning
told of the coming of southerly gale
that would not be pleasant for out or
in bound craft or the toilers OF the bay.
Early Thursday night the wind COM
menced to blow from the southeast
and later it veered to the southwest,
tucked itself under the corners of
Mission housetoDs, fell upon the ship
ping in Mission harbor and threw it
self against the worm-eaten piling Of
docks at the south end with a fury
that promised a still greater exposi-
ton of temper on the part of the wind
god.
Every ship captain whose vessel
was alongside a dock with a southern
exposure got out extra lines and pre-
pared for wild night Of bump and
grind with the. wharves. Tugboats
got busy in their engine-rooms and
had up steam to rescue the big ships
that would strain at their anchor
chains in the middle harbor. Inbound
vessels beat on and off in the high
seas, reeled to shortened sails and
avoided the angry looking bar that
was tossing with more whiteness than
a pillow fight in a young ladies' SEM
mary.
Then came the lull and the down
pour of rain. The bay and the ocean
fought the clouds, but Boreas only
laughed at their belated efforts. The
wind ran the bluff and the water
called it-but it was too late.
When Chief Wharfinger Dick Welch
politician sometimes and able sea-
man always-went to bed night before
last he had trouble on his mind. He
dreamed of dismantled piers and fer
ry depot adrift. He got up early and
proceeded to the water front and was
pleased beyond expression to find it
there, with Colonel" Tom Burgoyne
holding hard to the storm signal. hal
yards that they might not get too
badly tangled up with the disjoiuted
docks. = r. n
COURSERs ADRIET. -y.z j.
Captain Billy Manning of the
Spreckels Towboat Company was pip
lIlR the QISldnI OI -GOdl
to note if the Rehef's smokestack was
on straight, also to see whether
stray barge had been bumped on the
forbidden rocks of that bleak shore.
In the midst of his studious observa-
ton of the dangerous locality he re-
ceived word that the barge Courser
had gone adrift and that from her
decks three men and a dog-without a
boat-were overheard and needed
help The Relief and the Liberty
steamed to the rescue and picked up
the survivors. The dog was perched
on the shoulders of one of the rescued
men when the tug spied the human
and canine derelicts. The man who
had become the human raft was
clinging desperately to floating tim
ber.
A second survivor came ashore near
Crowley's boathouse and in addition
to being chilled by the icy waters of
the bay he had lost set of false
teeth and was. between shivering and
lack of ability to articulate, unable to
tell the exact latitude and longitude
he was in when he was cast adrift.
Assistant Chief Wharfinger John
Tyrrell was the busiest man on the
water front. He was assigned the
task of discovering whether there was
too strong a current in the Sacra-
mento River to permit of any one
making the capital before the legisla-
tive session. John Welch, Chief
Wharfinger Welch's brother, who
keeps a fashionable boarding hotel in
the Potrero, was at hand to report to
Captain John Martin of the Harbor
police station that the CLAIMS had been
driven up to his front door for feed
by the high water in the south section
of the city and that each produced his
union label Clerk Dave" Craemer
made a note of this.
DAMAGE TO DOCK.
Main-street dock was the only one
on the front damaged to any extent
by the wind and waves. Several yards
of bulkhead were washed out there.
Weather Prophet McAdie said that all
was well at the Cliff House and that
the State lad got a good drenching
What promised TO be a disastrous
gale had in reality done much good
for California and. barring marine ac-
cidents that may be heard from later,
the storm was a great success.
In the city nothing but awnings
hats and umbrellas suffered from the
high gale. At Third and Market
where the wind came down from the
dome Of the Claus Spreckels building,
a good natured crowd gathered and
gang of small boys earned 10 cents
per hat for every headgear recovered
after it had been caught in the vortex
and sent roofward. Umbrellas turned
inside out and ladies had hard time
crossing the street without assistance.
In the Mission the sewers failed to
carry off the surplus water and several
minor floods of Easements were re-
ported. Wires were prostrated and
on the east side of the bay the ferry
boat landings were with difficulty