Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-07-24
DOCKING A FISHING SMACK.
Nice Work of Skipper in Getting
Schooner into Slip.

When the Fulton market fishing
boats go out they are likely to take a
tow, at least as far down as the Bat
terry because ii saves time; and for
the same reason it may he cheaper to
tow up from the Battery to the slip
when they come in, says The sun, In
fact. sometimes when they are coming
In with fish that they want to get to
market and tide and wind are against
them they may tow up from the
Hook.
Taking one of these fine big schoon-
ers out of the slip into the compare
lively broad. open space of the river is.
of course. a simple thing to do. It's
when the tugboat skipper is bringing
III one of these boats that you can
see the nice work done
This fishing schooner that you see
now coming up the river is vessel
that gives the eye great pleasure; very
able and powerful looking she is and
at the same time very sharp and
yachtlike. Tall masts. very tall. and
a tremendous main boom. and forward
the bowsprit. set low. projects great
distance outward over the water. She
spreads a great amount of canvas and
if they were equally loaded she could
sail around pretty much any yacht of
her length: a very handsome vessel.
Dories are nested on her deck and you
can see her crew big crew of Is or
20 men. standing on deck in sea boats.
dashed alongside of her is tugooat
that's bringing her up to Fulton Mar
ket slip
They come along up the middle of
the river and then pretty soon all si-
lently YOU see her sheer in toward the
slip. making for II on a long diagonal.
and now. she's coming in closer and
the first thing YOU know the tip of
the long, tapering boRsnrit has passed
the end of the pier and still she keeps
a-coming. steadily, pointing So dag
enally across the waters of the slip.
The slip may be half full of boats
and you wonder when the tugboat's
skipper is going to check her, if mes
going to let that bewsprit's tip get
tangled up with the rigging of some
boat on the other side But now he is
swinging her, and the bowsprit. never
touching anything. however near it
may seem to come sweeps slowly
around in a great arc until now you
see the boat well up in and now
Strengthened out in slip, And all this
Tue TO the skill of the man in the
tugboats pilot house
Perhaps YOU thought as the schoon-
er slid past the pierhead that maybe
she'd hit there. she came in finally so
close But there never for a moment
was the slightest danger of it. The
tugboat's skipper knows every last
wrinkle of the wind and tide and to a
foot or maybe an inch Just what lee
way he'd make any where and he
knows to the last pound all about his
own power. ard ne knows with equal
exactness Just what his engineer will
do on every signal.
So the tugbcat's skipper brings the
schooner in here with no fuss or fur
~ whatever; SO easily and gently that
YOU can scarcely hear his propeller
churniDg in the water. There's no
shouting-no need for anv-aud no
frantic banging on the engine room
gorg; everything smooth and easy.
and YOU see that long bowsprit sweep
around in the slip. close maybe but
never touching anything; and now
the tugboat skipper has laid the
schooner gently in exactly the place
she wants to be. snug and easy along
side the wharf.
A nice Job nicely done Perhaps
you'd rather see the schooner under
sail in the open water, but it's some
thing worth seeing to watch the tug
boats skipper dock her when she
comes home.-Manchester Union.