Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-05-17
GENERAL NEWS GATHERED
ON THE RIVER FRONT

TAgboats are reported to be SO very
scarce for general towing work on Chesa-
peake bay that large vessels bound in and
out from Baltimore are often forced to
sail, there being no tug available to tow
them to the capes, and no immediate pros
pect of one coming in. This condition, it
Is stated, is brought about by the fact
that large proportion Of the fleet of
Chesapeake bay tugs are this summer un-
der charter for service as tenders to
dredges engaged In work about Baltimore
and other points on Chesapeake bay and on
the Delaware river, or are employed in
other special work that keeps them en-
ployed and prevents their engaging In gen.
eral towing work OF the two tugs owned
in this city large enough to engage in
bay towing one. the tug M. Mitchell Davis.
is employed as tender to a dredging
outfit on the Delaware river near New
Castle.
The receipts of hard-shelled crabs by the
dealers at the 18th street wharf Is large
enough to meet the demand, which is quite
heavy. The bulk Of. the crabs on sale are
coming from Norfolk, the river boats bring
ing up but few from the lower river Or
dinarily, at this season of the year. hard
crabs from river sources are plentiful, but
so far this season but few have been
caught, due to the cool, backward spring.
Soft crabs are on sale, but they are very
small, although they are said to be good
and fat. A few days Of continued warm
weather would bring. the crabs into the
Potomac.
Arrived-Bugeye Ellenora Russell, cord
wood from river point; bugeye Maggie
Smythe junk, from a Potomac point to
dealers; bugeye John Branford, pine lum-
Der from Machodoc creek for this market;
bugeye PLUME E. Smith. cedar posts, from
the lower Potomac; schooner William
Cunningham. cord wood and railway ties,
to the Firth-Sterling steel plant pier; tug
Dauntless with tow OF barges from
Baltimore: tug ]. T. Selectman, towing a
fleet Of sand and grayel-laden lighters
from down river point
Sailed: Schooner Charles H. Dagger, light,
for river point to load for this city:
schooner Minnie Estelle, light, for the Po-
tomac oyster beds to load; barge VIM. A
Smoot, laden with broken stone from
Georgetown for Norfolk; barge Mattapony.
light for Norfolk to load lumber; schooner
Edith Verrall. light, for Aqua creek to
load cord wood for this city; fattie Ben
Franklin, light, from Alexandria for the
Alexandria dealers.
observation-disclosures Strawbridge has
been chartered to load lumber at Charles
ton for this city; schooner A. H. Quinby
has been chartered to load railway ties
on the Potomac for Baltimore; schooner
Peri has gone to a nearby point on the
river to load for dealers here; schooner
G. c. Wheeler is lying at the wharf foot
Of 18th street unloading cargo Of laths
from Norfolk.
The bugeyes Sweet, J. w. Shelton and
Ella Parks are lying at the oyster wharf
at the foot of 18th street loading cargoes
of oyster shells, which will be carried to
points on the Eastern shore of Chesa-
peake bay and will be used on wornout
oyster beds. This will make the fourth
trip that the Sweet and Parks have made
to this city for shells.
The barges Potomac, Goodwill, Embrey,
Patuxent and Sauder, laden with hard coal
from the Pennsylvania mines for the deal
ers here and at Georgetown, were brought
into port yesterday by the tug Dauntless
and will discharge cargoes.