Evening star., 1912-11-10
ReVenueCutter Service

President Taft has signed the order
directing the detail of the vessels of the
revenue cutter service for annual winter
cruising work. for the protection of lives
and marine property on the Atlantic and
gulf coasts during the winter months.
Orders to the commanding officers of the
cutters have been prepared in the dvi-
sion of the service, Treasury Department.
and in the coming week these orders will
be sent out. Winter cruising begins De-
cember 1 and continues without inter-
mission until April l. 1913. The last two
weeks of this month will be busy times
aboard the cutters. Winter cruising gear
and stores have to be taken aboard and
the ships put in trim for four months
continuous work with only such time
spent in port as Is absolutely necessary
Since the winter cruising service of the
revenue cutters was started about eight
years ago many hundreds of thousands
of dollars in value of steamers and sail
ing craft have been saved from destruc-
ton and many thousand lives saved by
the cutters getting promptly to the aid
Of the vessels in trouble.
The new cutter Miami has established a
record in having assisted and towed into
port a vessel in distress while on her
way from the point at which she was
fitted out for service to her station and
before she had reported for duty. AS
the Miami was on her way to Key West
her station. from the Chesapeake. she
found the British schooner w. S. NJ.
Bentley of Nassau, on the Florida reefs
and abandoned. The vessel was loaded
with lumber and was full of water, but
the Miami succeeded in getting her afioat
and towing her into Key West The
vessel loaded lumber at Jacksonville and
October 81 sailed for Havana. What
has become of her crew is not known.
Having seen all commercial vessels out
of Alaskan waters and their way
south. the cutter Bear. which has been in
Alaskan waters and in the arctic since
last spring, sailed from Nome Tuesday
last en- route to San Francisco. To the
Bear is assigned the duty of convoying
every fall the last Of the merchant ships
through the fast making ice in Alaskan
waters to the open seas and not until the
last ship has been started south does the
Bear leave the Alaskan coast to it's ice
bound solitude. 1t Is understood that
the cutter will make several stops on her
way down the coast to San Francisco and
, is not expected to reach that port unit!
the latter part of this month or early in
December. Next winter 1t is probable
that the new cutter Unalga will spend
the winter in Alaskan waters, making
Unalaska headquarters.
Capt De Otte, in his report Of the search
for and rescue of the men aboard the
Norwegian steamship Noruega. which
was badly damaged in a collision with a
sailing ship. gives a thrilling account of
the difficulties encountered by his vessel,
the cutter Onondaga, and the naval ships
| in saving the vessel. A heavy storm
cessful attempts were made to shoot life
lines from the cutter to the injured
steamer. The crew were, after repeated
efforts, taken off and towing the ship
head that held from giving away, the
steamer was finally taken to Newport
News and placed in a dry dock An ex-
animation of the, vessel after she was
| docked showed that she was SO badly
| injured that had an effort been made to
tow her in bows foremost she would sure
| ~ have sunk The Norwegian ship
Glenlui, with which the Noruega was in
collision, was later brought to Newport
News by two tugs
manding the cutter Mackinac at Sault
Ste. Marie, Mich, reports that Seaman
Alfred Cook of the cutter was instru-
mental in saving six lives in the past
across the lake in a launch when he
found the launch Opal broken down and
in danger of being carried on rocks and
lost. The launch was taken in tow and
carried into a safe harbor.
The cutter Acushnet went to the aid |
Of the schooner E. a. Scribner. reported |
ashore on Squash Meadow Shoal, Vine |
yard sound. but before the cutter reached |
the vessel the rising tide had tioated her |
off. AS she was lying in a dangerous |
position and liable to go ashore again |
If she attempted to get under way the |
cutter took her in tow into Vineyard
Haven.
The cutter Gresham, which arrived at
the navy yard here yesterday from the
Boston station. to be supplied with new
guns, will go from this city to the repair
station at Arundel Cove, Nd, to receive
a general overhauling preparatory to