Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1915-11-25
PINNACLE ROCKS
ARE MENACE TO
TRADE BY WATER
Federal Department Discards
Sounding for Dragging Sys-
tenn to Root Up OBJ
staCles.
ARE DIFFICULT TO LOCATE
A Pinnacle Rock 10 Like an undersea
Dagger to a ship-LegaI lmpor-
lance Of Having Dangerous Rocks
charted Cannot Be Over
estimated.

WaShington.--If an aviator few over
New York some dark night, plumbing
for the Woolworth tower with an or
binary sounding line, he'd have just
as much chance of locating the build
ing as the photographic experts of the
department of commerce have in locat
ing pinnacle rocks from ten to thirty
feet under the surface Of the water by
using the same method. Accordingly,
the department is noslonger Sound.
ing' for pinnacle rocks; it is, drag
ging" for them.
Pinnacle rocks are one Of the gray
eat menaces to navigation that exist
In the coastal waters Of the United
States. New England has the most
abundant crop of any locality and the
coast of that section is probably the
hardest to chart Of any American
coast. With the new drag" method
in operation, however, charting of pin
nacle rocks is becoming an easy mat
ter.
Not only is pinnacle rock extreme
~ dangerous to navigation, but 1t is
extremely difficult to locate. A pin
nacle rock is exactly what its name
implies. 1t is tall, rocky pinnacle
which rises straight from the bottom
of the ocean and often the area of its
top surface would not be ten square
yards. When a. vessel strikes one,
though, pinnacle rock is like nothing
SO much as an undersea dagger.
Speed Was the Thing.
Years ago, when the coasts of the
United States were first charted, it
was necessary to make as much speed
as possible and cover the greatest pos
sible territory in the shortest possible
time. Under such conditions the
plumbing of coastal localities with a
sounding line and the determination OF
shoals by consideration of the general
characteristics Of the locality were
necessary, but these surveys left many
uncharted pinnacles behind, to bring
disaster to ships later on.
They tell story Of pinnacle rock
incident that occurred on one OF
Peary's trips to Greenland, back III
the late nineties. Peary's ship was
holding straight course for Green
land, but owing to the cloudiness OF
the weather a lookout was posted. The
routine of the ship was suddenly dis
turbed by the cry of the lookout:
breakers dead ahead" The helms
man spun his wheel and the shiI
heeled sharply to port, just in time tc
escape sunken rock which was about
three feet under water. Had it not
been for the lookout Peary might
never have reached the pole.
The department of commerce has
been aware for a long time of the lack
of authentic charts of many portions
of the American coast, and the danger
of pinnacle rocks was the real reason
why the old plumbline system was dis
carded for the wire-drag method
which is very much similar to the old
fashioned seine.
\ A line is run between two motol
boats, several hundred yards apart
This line is supported on the water by
floats, but suspended from it are othel
lines, all attached to a long wire, un
der water, which is held down by
weights. The wire under water Or
responds exactly to the lower edge o
a seine.