Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-01-05
STRANDED TROOPS
ALL SAFELY ASHORE
Fire Island Rescue Work
Without Parallel in An
nails of Shipping.
HOPE TO SAVE TRANSPORT
By the Associated Press.


FIRE ISLAND, N. T.. January A.
Weary sailors manning the stranded
transport Northern Pacific. who shared
with coast guard and the crews of
rescue ships in the unparalleled task
Of sending safely ashore through the
breakers $500 well and wounded sol
ciers, climbed into their hammocks
tonight free. for the first time in four
days, of anxiety over the safety Of
the Army veterans homeward bound
from Europe. The last Of the troops
aboard went over the side today.
The sun. which cheered the liners
company today after the hours of
mist, rain, snow and cutting wind,
had hardly dropped below the horizon
when the slender arc of new moon
appeared above bank of red-tinged
clouds in the west giving promise of
fair weather tomorrow for the re-
moval of half the grounded vessels
crew.
Transfer of Crew Easier.
This undertaking, impracticable to-
day when transferral of the bed-rfd-
den wounded dragged along into mid
afternoon, will be simple one COM
pared with the delicate task of low
ering helpless men from the tower
decks of the liner and hosting them
aboard the hospital ship Solace
mile off shore.
While a watch of ten or twenty men
would be sufficient to hold title to the
transport against salvagers, Capt.
Connolly decided to retain skeleton
crew of ESQ to assist the wrecke,s, 5,
whose efforts to release the big ship
have failed thus far to badge her
from the bed of sand piled around her
hull.
Ship in Good Condition.
Capt Connolly reported to Capt
Sterling, chief of staff of the third
naval district, in command on the
beach, that his vessel was taking no
water. The ship, he said. was in ex.
cellent condition and the crew in
good spirits, though anxious to get
ashore.
Capt. Meade. coast guard veteran,
said the transport, standing so high
on the beach, would remain intact al
most indefinitely in moderate sea,
but predicted that the big craft would
be pulled off on the first flood tide &C.
companied by an inshore wind which
would increase the depth of the water
covering the sand.
Two wrecking tugs pulled for half
the day with hawsers attached to the
liners stern and late in the afternoon
brought two lighters close inshore,
ready to apply the power of their
huge steam winches to the hauling
cables, but the approach of early
midwinter twilight caused postpone
ment of the salvage operations.
Two Bodies Taken Off.
The last boat to leave the troop
ships side carried two collins contain
ing bodies of wounded soldiers, who
died after the vessel left France. the
bodies of Private Howard H. Ash
bridge, Company G, 314th Infantry,
18th Division, and of Private James A.
Newell. Company K. 32sth Infantry.
SD Division.
In preparation for the ever-pres-
ent possibility that an east gale might
force abandonment of the ship, two
coast guard crews of sixteen men
were OH the beach tonight. Three Of
ticers and fifty men of the 18th In
fantry and thirty of the Sanitary Corps,
with two medical officers, also were
on duty. The lifesavers and medi-
cal men will maintain their vigil at
h h % <tR &c.