Los Angeles herald., 1908-04-23
TURBULENT SEA
THREATENS LIVES
SLIGHT DAMAGE DONE BY
WAVES
BREAKERS LAsHED INTO WHITE
FOAM
Sailors Whose Shore Leave Has Ex-
pired Are Told to Wait Until
the Storm Dies

One of the coldest and most dis
agreeable days that the beach between
Redondo and Santa Monica has known
for many months brought also an un-
usually turbulent sea, which yesterday
afterr DON and evening at one time
threatened the lives of several per-
sons and did some damage at one or
two places.
Great breakers, lashed into a mass
of white foam, broke upon the strand
from early morning until late last
night, almost touching the high tide
line. and for time threatening sew
eral of the older piers along the coast
which shook to and fro as the monster
waves broke with a sullen roar among
the piles.
Hundreds of sailors and marines
whose shore leave expired yesterday
afternoon and evening found it i'm
possible to make the trip back to the
warships at Redondo or Santa Mon
battleships released the men for the
night.
Scores of sailors stood shivering in
the wind along the shores and piers
at Redondo, Venice and Santa Monica
for hours before they were granted
liberty for the night, and when the
word finally came from the 'wig-wag'
that they could return TO the city If
they so desired they hurried shiver-
ingly to the cars and came to Los
Angeles.
BY sunset the breakers We're beating
in like mountains on a rampage and
the wind was blowing at a somewhat
higher speed than druing the early
part of the storm. The big battleships
npI111 10 rocking from the
mainland and as it requires powerful
swells to disturb these massive steel
structures the force of the pelagic dis
turbance may be realized.
Tried to Make Trip
A half dozen times several daring
sailors from the Kentucky and Ala
bama off Redondo lowered launches
and undertook to make the trip to the
dock to take on the liberty men. but
as often were compelled to turn back.
While these attempts were being made
the launch Florence of Redondo, be-
longing to L. E. Norman, was dashed
against the piles of the big pier and
practically demolished. The force of
the breakers bore it against the tim
bers so hard that it was almost split
in two. She was mahogany trimmed
and built to make twenty miles an
hour, but her owner, who built the
IAtuOlluO p1NlllCil, N}APCStCo " SPVSN
her up to twenty-four miles in the
next contest.
While the Florence of Redondo was
being dashed to pieces a score of
smaller boats, moored off the end of
the dock, were being borne in by the
breakers with such tremendous force
that late last night it was feared the
mooring ropes would break. Several
of the owners sat up to patrol the
beach and do whatever is in their
power should the storm succeed in
liberating the launches.
Hundreds of visitors at the beaches
outside of San Pedro, where the big
government breakwater always insures
halcyon weather, were unable to go
aboard the warships and returned to
town disappointed.
AT San Pedro several hundred school
children went aboard the battleships
anchored there and many boats were
kept busy handling other visitors until
the rain set in, when most of the
crowd returned to their homes. None
of the beaches did much business and
but few people went to Venice, Re-
dondo or Santa Monica.
Sailors Near Death
At Venice several sailors We're cap
sized trying to make shore and had a
narrow escape from drowning. Two
boats from the Ohio broke away from
their fastenings and were washed
ashore, but escaped damage.
AT Playa del Rey one small boat. 1t
is said. was sunk and another was
washed ashore. During the preceding
night and for several weeks many
boats mysteriously broken from their
moorings have drifted with the tide to
Venice and there have been recovered.
1t was stated to a reporter of The
Herald at Playa del Rey last night
that a gang of Los Angeles boys,
camped in a tent there, cut the boats
loose at night and the next day bring
them back from Venice, where they
drift, receiving so cents for each boat
so recovered.
That's one way we make money
here" said one of the youngsters to
the reporter, "and maybe you think it
amt easy"
The boy explained by saying that
as the town had only one man and
woman acting as deputy marshals they
had no trouble in lodging them.
1t was stated at Playa del Rey last
night that the boys actions would be
watched, as such mischief during the
present storm would result in great
damage to the boats.