The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-11-03
United States Revenue Cutter Service
Always Ready to Save Ship
in Distress or Catch
Criminals.
BUSY IN THE WINTER
Vessels Are All Small and Usually
Put Out to Sea When Others
Are Hurryins to
the Shore.
| United Press Special Service. !

& j
WASHINGTON, Oct. 31.-Imagine
sailing vessel pounding helplessly I'm
the Atlantic. her rigging partly gone,
her decks and spars coated with ice,
water coming in the hold, part of the
crew suffering from frustbite, the re-
mainder from lack of food, some OF
the sailors injured. Imagine then
vessel coming up to her, offering
line to tow her to port, providing food
Tor her hungry men, medicine for the
SICK, assistance in righting her Cts
ordered sailing gear
There you have the job which is
performed free many times each win
ter by the men of the revenue cutter
service, the policemen OF the At
lantic and Pacific coasts.
Semper paratus' always ready)
Is the motto of the service and in its
125 years OF existence 1t has proven
one OF the most valuable adjuncts to
Uncle Sans government outfit that
has ever been devised.
1t takes $2,505,0oO a year to run the
revenue cutter service. Last year the
service saved the taxpayers OF the
III. s. $12,000,O00. 1t collected in fines
for infringement of the navigation
laws over 81, 000, 600. Thus it was cell
supporting, counting only the amount
Of fines collected.
Uncle Sans revenue cutters are on
the job all the year around, but it is
when the November winds begin to
howl, kicking UP big seas and the
weather bureau gets busy Issuing
storm warnings, that its most arduous
services begin. From December / to
April the Atlantic coast from East
Port, Me-, to Cape Hatteras is a most
treacherous stretch. great collec-
ton of small and large coastwise craft
keep plying up and down. Nearly
every day from one to a half dozen
OF them gets into trouble. A mast
blown over, rudder broken, ship
ashore, sailors sick, all sorts of trou-
bles occur that make these boats help
less and in need of assistance.
From Maine to Florida there are
about one dozen revenue cutters on
the Job all during the winter season.
Each one of them has an allotted sec
ton to patrol. The stations are as
signed by order of the president. The
captain of each cutter has positive
orders to render assistance to all craft
of their size, nationality
CT destination AS matter OF fact
they are called upon but little to aid
the large ships that cross the ocean
1T Is the dinhy little schooners with
their burdens of freight that call for
the most assistance. 1t is the duty OF
the patrols to assist any vessel in dis
tress, provide medicine for the sick,
take charge of the vessels if neces-
sary. haul them to port If they are
Or blow them up if this is
impossible. If derlicts or any floating
obstacles to navigation are reported
cutters are Immediately ordered to
search for them. One cutter, the
Seneca. which is generally stationed
off New York harbor is employed for
the sole purpose Of blowing up dere-H
lets
The government collects no fees
from owners of vessels that have been
saved For the medicine or food fur
nished the men or for towing services.
the vessels have to pay nothing If
private persons did this salvage work
they would be able to collect i'm
mense damages.
The wireless room Of revenue cut
ter is busy place in winter. Each
cutter carries two operators and pe-
sides sometimes an operator who
knows the code we'll enough to listen
in" so that he can relieve the other
men as far as the receiving of mes
sages is concerned Each operator
works four hours at stretch, at the
expiration of which time he is re-
lieved by the other. The cutters not
only keep sharp watch for mes
sages of distress, but very often re-
lay messages from other vessels when
the latter are unable for some reason
to get, the vessel or shore station
for which they are calling.
The cutters are all. comparatively
small! vessels. Considering the diff
ficulties under which they work, their
conduct in heavy weather is consid-
cred marvel of navigation. The
only time that cutter will not. put to
sea is when the weather is SO heavy
that her master knows he would be
of no assistance to stricken ships and
that he would have all he could do to
take care of his own vessel. 1t lakes
mighty fierce storm TO keep one of
these boats In port 1t is generally
the case that they are putting out to
sea when all other vessels are maxi
ing for shelter In all the 1913 years
Of the history of the service only two
or three vessels have been lost. One
OF these ran on the rocks Of the Maine
coast and was broken TO pieces De-
fore her crew could do a thing to save