The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-12-18
631HORSESFOR
ALLIES DROWN
ASBARGESINKS
Lighter Goes Down in West
23d Street Slip: Police
Investigating.
ANIMALS FOR HOURS
IN ICY WATER TRAP

In lCl AlEk InAI
Cap'n Gene Smith Of the barge Belle
Reynolds, snugly tied up In the slip
az the foot OF West Twenty-third street.
between the Erie Railroad ferryhouse
and the Anchor Line pier. glanced river
the Jersey City Stock Yards Company's
lighter virginia was being butted by
tugoat into the slip and against the port
side Of the big black Anglo-Californian
the 5000 ton cargo carrier OF the Anglo
Line.
Cap'n Genes glance settled suddenly
on the laboring lighter. stayed there FOR
minute or so. and then he smacked
his sou'wester clad leg.
mike" he said 10 his mate. that
ever is Oh board OF her transferred to
the Anglo Line boat. Take look at
her, man. She's two foot down by the
head, and II I ever saw waterlogged
barge shes one"
Ten minutes later Capn Gene watched
the stock coinpany's lighter list to port,
sag beneath the surface OF the icy water
and settle on the muddy bottom OF the
slip Then he saw thirty horses struggle
and scramble clear OF restraining pen
sides and plunge into the water. TO swim
helplessly among the Ice cakes.
Later on he knew. rs Police Captain
Flward Burns and Supt. l.. l.. lie Furge
of the Anchor Lire and the :. i. {. A.
agents knew, that more than 500 horses
about to I've unloaded from the barge
Virginia 10 the Anglo-californian were
drowned because of the unexplained
leaking OF the lighter--horsee worth at
least 100000 and consigned to the
French port Of Brest as the war prop
erty OF the French Government.
OnIy ~ Horses Unloaded.
Dozers OF bargemen and pier EN-
pioyees saw the Virginia stumble into IN.
sln and attempt to transfer her cargo
without using pumps 10 buoy up her till-
| ing hull They could not understand. ~
they told Police Capt. Burns last night.
! why the crew Of the tug Edward Keller,
| which Showed the horse lighter into the
! slip, had uot attached siphor to the
barge and let some of the sea water ont
I 90 her before the business OF unloading
! began. But they didn't, as Capt. 'urns
! Insisted with considerable anger last
might. and the crew of the virginia had
sent only eighteen horses out OF a con-
siyumeut of S2l aboard the Anglo-Cali-
! fornian when tn. lighter listed To por,
| and began to sink.
| She was well along In years, IN,
| lighter. and had been IA railroad 6oat
carrying freight ca:s before she was
taken over by thu Jersey city stock Yards
Company 20 transfer horses from then
corluis to steamships. For the business
| In hand she was equipped with dounl.
| decks, one big horse pen on top Of th'
other. When she began to 60 down II
the slip crowded with barges and tug
| hoats. all unable to lend a helping hand
her captain, John smith, was nearly -.
rled overheard by the quick. desperate
! struggle ~ the horses TO get free. Capt
| Smith escaped, but his mate. Henr,
Swee;man. was entangled IN the rush .
horses and swept overheard. He jus
managed To- swim 10 the barge Senate
Rice before he gave out from cold an'
| exhaustion.
Practically the minute that the bottom
OF the Virginia settled on the mud
Twenty-Five feet below the surface, tn
800 horses in the lower deck pen wcr
dead, Hut the 300 and more that wcr
penned on the upper deck were not -
fortunate. Many IN their fright wor
knocked from their feet and drownet
Icy the sides Of their stronger or les
nervous companions, SeS eral. as Capt
Burns and others saw when tney locke,
: down into the hold when il had been OK
posed hours later by men that choppe,
the top deck TO pieces. had hange'
themselves by stretching their necks owe
| stall compartments and swinging thei
weight upon their necks IN a vain en-
deavor TO keen above the rising water.
:. T.. 4. \. Men On Job.
At a little after 1880 - NJ. a telc
phone call went into Police Headquar
ters. which transferred the message I
I, the West Twenty eighth street static
and to, Cant. Burns Burns rushed [
. the foot Of West Twenty-third stree
with all ot his available men He ser
word simultaneously to the headquar
tcrs OF the society for the Prevention G
J Cruelty to Animals AT Madison avenu
! and Twenty sixth street. Almost
l the time that Burns was On the job tn
4. i. G. \. officers Charles Mackir
William Cannif. Simon Simon an
!. Garrett Howard had arrived AT the sill
with one of their big horse ambulance
supply Of blankets, medicines an,
r most important OF all. block and tack
rigging,
3 Az the policemen and animal save,
= looked out to where the Virginia In,
only three feet OF her showing abo,
T water. they could not sec that 800 horss
,. wers dead In her lower deck and thu
o OF the 900 on tho upper deck the on,
= that remained alive were being chile
= and stiffened by the Icy water tn:
= reached their bellies. What they did =,
!. instantly and what occupied their be
r energies for the next two hours was III;
Ave terrified horses were swimmIr
d blindly about the slip trying to fir
i lodgment for head or hOof
r Rope ends were hastily iooped ar
/. cast about tho nccks OF these horse
/, Dozens OF volunteers. most OF them do,
II hangerson, but all men with very re
= sympathy for tho struggling animal
Il laid hold of the ropes and kent Il
= horses heads above water while Il
II block and tackle rigging was put In
u operation. One by one then the hors
Il were pulled up the stone sides of q
pier far enough for wide canv,
g bandage to be slipped underneath the
If bellies. Then the tackle was attach,
10 to the bandaRe and slowly each hor
!; was hauled to the street level. O,
d died AS II collapsed on its side in snO
a and Ice, hut four were trotted to Ga
l. vey's livery stable In West Twenty-se
"a ond street.
" The work OF the s. =. G, 4. men a
"A counted for all OF the horses that II,
escaped from the barge except the eig
teen that had been unloaded into Il
| Au-l, ra ll%nrnlop hafnra tn. lioht