The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-02-14

No news was received at the Navy De
partment yesterday Of the lost tug Nina
and her crew Of twenty-eight men.
officers Of the Bureau Of Navigation
kept in close touch with the department
through the day. hoping for something
which would relieve the tension. Moth
ing came. Last night the possibility that
the little vessel may be found was re
Earded as having grown materially less
through the passing Of another twenty
-four hours without information as TO her
safety.
Every Means Employed.
Every means at the disposition Of the
Navy Department and the Revenue Cut
ter Service is being used 10 give relief
90 the vessel, which is somewhere above
or below the waters Of the Atlantic be-
tween Chesapeake Bay and Cape Cod.
In the absence of any definite informa-
ton. hope of her safety sank lower, and
officers OF the navy regard the posi-
biiity Of her recovery as small.
one wireless message was received by
Commander Lloyd II. Chandler for the
Bureau of Navigation, who kept in touch
with the department throughout the day
and well into the night.
II brought only the information that the
scout cruiser Salem, dispatched from the
Norfolk Navy Yard over the course Of
the Nina, was engaged in the search.
There was nothing whatever about the
wireless which brought assurance as TO
the fate of the missing tug
Had the Nina been equipped with wire
less apparatus, help might have been
summoned to aid her. and the work of
the searchers would have been made
comparatively easy. That she was not
so equipped may have cost the lives OF
Chies Boatswain John 5. Croghan, Of
Washington, and his crew.
Now seven Days Lost.
At $50 o'clock yesterday morning seven
days had elapsed since the Nina steamed
from the navy yard at Norfolk and head
ed out of Chesapeake Bay for Boston.
The passing of this period without
news Of the vessel brought a feeling of
the gravest apprehension.
While there is stin a possibility that
she has suffered some mlshap which
would enable her to keep aaoat, the
chances that she will be found are so
slight as to arouse the gravest alarm.
The Navy Department has received many
requests for information concerning the
lost tug. It has been able to reply only
that every endeavor is being made to
give her the relief which she is believed
TO need.
IN the fact that the Nina is one Of the
oldest of naval tugs is found a source of
danger.
To the criticism that was made yester-
day OF the department for sending the
vessel upon so long a trip. the reply was
made that she had been found fit and
that repairs have frequently been made
upon the tug and her machinery. through
which she was considered safe and sea-
worthy
No news came yesterday from the reve-
nue. cutters Gresham and Acushnet.
which were waiting at Woods Hole to
steam as soon as the fog lifted. Vessels
which are making the search are
equipped with wireless, and prompt no.
tidcation is expected should she be found.
Nay Hear To-day.
The Navy Department expects to re-
ceive dispatches to-day from the vessels
engaged in the search.
The fact that she has not been sighted
since leaving Chesapeake Bay tends to
discredit the theory that she is drifting
In the path of the coasters.
It is possible the strong northwest winds
which have prevailed during the last week
may have driven the Nina out into mid
ocean If this mas happened, the food
problem viii become serious within the
next few DAYS COR she carried only a
slight excess over a sufficient stock of
provisions TO last during the cruise from
Norfolk to Boston