The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-12-09
ship CRASH MAKES
BATTERY A PASTURE
Two StOried Barge Loaded
With Cattle and sheep Sunk
Near Aquarium.
LASSOED FROM WATER
Park Benches Used by Police
to Fence in Metropolitan
Grazing Ground.

The fret corral ever seen In Battery
Park was improvised early last evening
by Policemen Timmins and Fitzpatrick
with benches placed end to end. backs
inward. forming a circle about forty
feet In diameter. In this metropolitan
grazing field thirteen steers. calves and
sheep contentedly browsed on the grass
that has still some hint Of the green Of
summer.
The cattle and sheep were casta ways
from the wreck Of the two storied barge
FL Paso. sunk of tho Battery several
hundred feet east Of the Aquarium just
after sunset IN .. mist by the Eastern
steamship Company's steamship North
Star. bound out for Portland. The North
Star was only slightly damaged and
proceeded.
When the barge FL Paso. IN tow Of
tho tug Francis Rickert, left the Erie
freight yard in Jersey City in the after
noon she had ABOARD l2s cattle (mean-
ing steers). i3s calves and 252 sheep.
all alive. but destined to early death In
an abbatoir on the East River. When
the cattle and sheep arrived OF Pier 1.
North River, and headed into the swirl
| OF currents at the Battery the North
Star was Just astern Of the cattle craft
and the sun had been down ten minutes.
Ten minutes later the barge also was
down and nearly all the sheep had an
ticipated death in the abhatoir by
drowning
Wallis and Bellows for Help.
| When the stem OF the North star slid
| through the starboard wooden wall OF
| the barge III Paso the whistle of the
| towing tug Rickert walled for help. The
bleating OF the frightened sheep and the
bellowing of the cattle helped the vapor
OF the Rickert to sunEron succor.
! Acting Capt Halleck OF the police boa,
Patrol heard the united distress signals
| and headed the Patrol toward the barge
He took of the only humans aboard
wilfred Miller, Martin o'Grady and John
Miller, who called themselves the r.
Pasos crew. They were not even wet
as the barge had just begun TO sink.
The skipper OF the Rickert did wha'
he set out to do, getting the barge =,
close to the Battery wall that she
grounded. with her upper deck, on which
! were most of the cattle, Only foot
under water.
The rent made by the Prov ~ tn.
North Star !et 4 large number OF cattl,
and sheep flow into the bay Most Of iht
cattle were young and many Of IN.
sheep were tough enough 20 bc sold a
81
IN the rush. nut more than a hundre,
swan toward the Battery wall. Capt
Lyon of the frehoat William l.. strong
noored at the Battery. was notified y,
his pilot. Flahiye, by "A screaming whistle
that something was going ou in hi!
neighborhood, and he turned out al
hands Firemen Cahi,l. Whelar. Walsh
Kelly. Reishcr and Engineer Sheehan.
Every fireman got "A heaving lin, ant
all Jumped almost simultaneously on th'
Battery wall and went for the drove a
cattle and flock OF sheep struggling II
the bay. The instinct OF the nautica
fireman. Capt. Lyon said, wac to say,
life. no matter what kind. and that /,
why there was a magnificent mixuI
twenty feet or more Off the Battery wal
between sheep and calves and steers a.
tender age. all unwilling To he save
and not knowing the way to safety
! Most OF the nrelnen Were ndNlsI int
cold water more than waist deep befor,
| they persuaded the calves and sheep tha
II was the right thing to swim with thei
, rcsruers.
Naturally. while the frcmen wer
rescuing one or two each Of the fright
ened animals, many more sucCurnOe'
! and driftcd lifeless on the rocks below
the Battery wall Some Of the tiremei
had to battle vigorously with the youn,
steers 10 get them landed They wer
, hauled up on the wall and eight of them
three sheep and five cattle. were herde'
I'm the shed on the Hrcboat ncir to awai
claimants.
, While the acrohatic hremen wer
tusslng with the bovine and mutto
castaways the policemen on the Batter
I wall, assisted by civilian talent, wer
lassoing sheep and suspected lambs
Some 90 with Commuters.
II was then that the park bench cor
| raj was constructed hut all the lamb
, did not get into the corral. AT least on
man was seen going aboard "A State
Island ferryboat leading "A lamb. Late
| reports from Staten Island said tina
! twenty commuters leading lambs wer
- seen going on a ferryhoat at st. Georg,
= This lent credcnce Ia the assertion G
r one of the policemen who had taken pai
= IN the rescue that more than half of tn