Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-04-09
Coast Guardsmen
(Continued from PAGE One)

lore heading north 10 the Ice neius
was also her longest. On February
10 while preparing for the ice pa
troll, her boilers under repair and her
radio outfit dismantlcd, the Tampa
was ordered to go to the aid Of the
Italian steamship Nlonccnisio. re-
ported sinking about 600 miles off
Norfolk. The boilers were closed,
temporary radio equipment thrown
in and nino hours after the message
came the Tampa was on her way.
The cutter cruised for several days
about the last reported position OF
the MOncenisio, covering about $500
square miles, but saw no sign of sur
vivors.
Another vessel assisted by the
Tampa was the British schooner
Dorm, rum-laden, which the cutter
picked up in a helpless condition
January 10, $50 miles southeast Of
Nantucket Shoals Li.htship and
towed 800 miles TO Providence. The
Dorin's cargo was valued at $3.50, 900.
On January the schooner Snctind,
with Il cargo of coal was rescued
while dragging towards the breakers
off Highland coast guard station,
Cape Cod, and toWcd to safety
The cutter Ossipee which operated
throughout the season until disabled
on the Maine coast, gave assistance
to Is vessels, valued at $4,000, with
cargoes valued at $274,00O. Most of
these carried coal, 1851 tons Of
which was taken into Maine ports.
The OSSipce's work which began in
the fall. reached it's height in January
and February when long continued
cold weather, sometimes with tenn
peraturcs of 80 degrees below zero,
and a II foot fall Of snow closing in
the harbors and bays until the coast
was ice bound at many points.
The heaviest work was done in
PcnUbScot Bay, which was entirely
frozen over below Fort Point, be-
tween Belfast and Castine and sew
cral miles below Belfast on both the
eastern and western sides of Isles
bOrO. 4 II mile channel was cut out
and dynamite through ice foot
thick to enable several steamers to
dock at Stockton with coal and gen.
cral freight which was sent by rail
to Bangor and other points in east
ern Maine.
The Ossipee's ice-brcaking activi-
ties and relief work were interrupted
March l when her stern was dam
aged while towing a coal-laden barge
into Stonington through a newly
made channel. necessitating repairs.
The cutter Acushnct was sent from
the Woods Hole station TO carry on
the work.
The Acushnet. relieving the Ossi-
pee, on March y, was hailed off
Rockland by the master of the
schooner Sallie Persis Moves who
said his men were in mutiny and
that he desired assistance. Investi-
cation revealed that four men desir-
oil RI h, l,,tx
The Acushnet took the master and
four men on board and landed them
at Rockland to have their difference
adjudjcatcd before the shipping
commissioner.
The log of the Acushnct revealed
that from October l TO March 81 she
had cruised 6,053 miles. The total
value of vessels assisted was 1914
500 and the value of their cargOes
s20i.1i4. The cutter successfully as
sisted - vessels with q tonnage of
22,nii.
The difficulties of the ice breaking
work was depicted in the log in
many ways. among them figures
showing that in cruising from Rock
land, Nc, to Scarsport. a distance of
rs miles. enough coal was consumed
to traverse 500 miles of open water
and enough water was used for 1000
miles Of open water
AS result of the ice-breakng
work, for which the cutter was not
specifically built, she is in need of
dry docking and thorough overhaul
ing. After leaving Stonington, Me.
she was found to he leaking forward
as the fresh water tanks were found
TO contain salt water. "-All rivets in
the first three frames were leaking"
the log said. The shoe on the stem
was denied one one half inches
deep for distance of II inches. The
BOTTOM had been scraped clean of
paint by the ice TO above the water
line"
The only port which the cutter
found herself unable TO break into
vas Nantucket. which was icebound
for several weeks. There large
accumulation of mail was landed on
the east end of the island where
there was open water, by small boats
from thes cutter and boats from the
coast guard station.
@ March % the Acushnet went to
the aid of the schooner Dorothy
Palmer. the last of the Palmer
fleet, which was aground on the
Stone Horse Shoals. The crew was
landed at the Monomoy coast guard
station. IhlS was the second time
the cutter had been to the schooner's
assistance. having previously lowed
her 50 miles in As hours after the
schooner had dropped anchor off
NobS Bay.
The Acushnet had no sooner trans
fcrrcd the crew of the Dorothy Palm
or than she was called to the aid of
the NantOsco. close inshore in East
Chou on Martha's Vineyard. She
was pulled off with difficulty.
During the entire winter cruise
there was an average of six of the
Acushnet's crew in the ships hos
pital due 20 the exposure of the ard
uOuS work.
A number of times during the
winter the Acushnet was ordered out
on rum boat hunting expeditions,
but none was captured.
Drug Thief Now Servinu Sentence