The San Francisco call., 1908-12-03
Shipping News and Gossip
of the Water Front
Ancient Gunboat Pinta to Be Resurrected From
the Boneyard and Used as Towboat

The United States gunboat Pinta.
which was in its prime in the days of
the civil war and which was con-
demned about year ago and sold as
Junk, is TO be resurrected from the bone
yard and will begin life anew as a civ
ilian towboat The Pinta was built
In 1850, when the art of building wooden
ships to last forever was an exact
science. It's, career in the navy was
long and honorable, some of its best
work having been done in Alaska wa
ters. More than 10 years ago the bu-
reau of navigation began to regard
the Pinta as something of a marine
curiosity and a good subject for con-
demnation.
The naval militia of this state put in
an application for an additional train
ing ship about the time the Pinta's fate
was under consideration, and the gun
boat was spared and turned over TO
the citizen sailors at San Diego. As
the years rolled on the Pinta grew in
uslessness and about a year ago the
navy department decided that the
little old warship was of no further
value to Uncle Sam. There was an auc-
ton sale at Mare island and the Pinta
passed into the hands of a junkman.
who towed his bargain to Oakland
creek and proceeded to strip the hull of
n -
only the empty hull was left.
Then the junkman had sale and
the Pinta became the property of one
Captain Leffingwell. who is going to in
stan new engine and new boiler and
put the one time gunboat into commits
sion as perfectly good towboat
Due Saturday at Honolulu
The army transport Thomas is the
next troopship due from Manila and is
expected TO arrive at Honolulu Decem-
per D. The ranking officer on board is
Lieutenant Colonel c. W. Mason of the
twenty ninth infantry. The Thomas
has on board. a large number of pas
Battery F, Fifth field artillery. Sc cas-
uals, three insane patients, 81 military
prisoners and 19 sick.
The transport Buford, which will
cabin passengers, 200 enlisted men of
the navy and loo United States ma
rines
Too Much WhaIebone I'm Market
No whalers will be sent to the Arc
tic this year. The reason given by the
money in the business. The true rea-
SON. II is now said is that William
Lewis OF New Bedford, who controls
me Whalebone market and has a de-
cldlng voice in the matter OF outfit
UnE the ships, has on hand about
100000 pounds of whalebone. Lewis
has decided that the best way to In
sure a good price for the bone is to
season or two and for this reason the
whalers will lie in Oakland creek until
the Whalebone trust has unloaded.
LtIlebOnne Changes Owners
The schooner Lillebonne, which has
been laid up in Oakland creek since
November. 1907, when it arrived here
from Nelson's lagoon in a dis1nasted
condition is going. into commission
again as a power schooner The Lille
ponne IS to be equipped with twin
screws and two gasoline engines and
viii be used in the coast lumber trade.
British Ship Ashore
The British ship Ballachulist. from
Hamburg for Santa Rosalia, went
ashore November 10 on a sandspit two
miles south of Topolobampo bar in the
was jettisoned and two days later the
vessel was foated.
Water Front Notes
The steamer NJ. s. Dollar arrived De-
cember l at Mororan from Yokohama
The Antiope on November %. the
5eg6eneam tSiids NnnemSS@ mSsemSer % and the Ma
Nawcastle. Australia, for San Fran
cisco, Acapulco and Honolulu, respec-
lively.
10 o'clock yesterday morning for this
port
Receipts of lumber yesterday by sea
amounted TO 523, 900 feet
Relief lightship Relief went to sea
yesterday in search Of a buoy reported
adrift along the coast.
The harbor commissioners will hold
their regular meeting this morning in
The British bark Zinita, previously
reported returned to Deal damaged, has
repaired and proceeded The Zinita is
bound for Port Townsend.