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1902.] MARINE REVIEW AND MARINE RECORD, 29 mind and was soon asleep. To save oil I never left a lamp burning, for the nights were long, and I did not know how tong I should be drifting around on the lake. The vessel was headed directly for Middle island. How long my sleep lasted I cannot tell, but I found myself standing bolt upright on the cabin floor almost stupefied. Such a crash, such a howling of wind, such torrents of rain! Added to this was the lifting of the vessel, jibing of the foresail and the shaking of the whole fabric. The ice had cracked straight through to Middle is- land and opened to about 4o ft. as nearly as I could judge. It -- was intensely dark. I will not tell you how I felt as the vessel went bounding along in the crack she had made, but I do not want to have to do it over again. I got a light and looked at the compass and found that she was heading directly on to Mid- dle island. 'It was not long befere she fetched up with such a crash that I thought she must be an entire wreck forward and would sink there and then. And what made it worse the globe lamp fell from the table and the light was extinguished. I had put a heavy coat and sou'wester on, and a pair of mittens. I jumped on deck, as I did so the hurricane of wind and rain just took away my breath. The wind now was righ abeam. This showed me that she had swung around broadside too. And now occurred the most terrifying thing of all for the ice was running under her and piling up alongside until finally it filled the deck up full from abaft the fore rigging aft to the cabin. And I must tell you now, for I did not know it then, being too dark, that she had run onto a body of ice piled up over 25 ft. above the water. 'The ice fall- ing onto the decks seemed to be grinding the vessel all to slivers. ,On sounding the next morning I found over four fathoms of water under her. What a night of horror! 'The wind dropped as suddenly as it had risen and a clear, cold, white sky followed. I was wet, cold and benumbed. I went down into the cabin with a fear that I should step into the water, but was happily disap- pointed. The vessel had a big list to starboard, on account. of there being so much ice on that side. I found my lamp and lighted it, made a good hot fire and some hot coffee, put on dry clothing, sounded the pump, and was made happy by finding that she did not leak. So now with a pikepole, chain hock, and ax I began to again clear the decks of ice and did not finish my job until noon. . Tired I was you may be sure, but this did not stop me from going ashore with my ax and sleigh and getting nearly a cord of wood, which had drifted on the beach. I happened to look out forward and found that the martingale stay was parted; also the cap broken so the gibboom was all adrift. This was done when she fetched up. 'Io make things safe I put a good lashing around the bowsprit and jibboom, splicing the stay and _ setting up the martingale back ropes. I turned in and slept soundly till morning. In the middle of the night some ice floating with current or wind was moved away from the high body and carried the vessel with it about seventy rods west of the island, and there she stopped. It was then calm. I let go the anchor and gave her twenty-five fathoms of chain. The day was calm, so lI lowered the boat and took an ax to get wood. 'There was no lighthouse on the island at that time. The only inhabitants were five head of cattle left there by Mr. Simon Fox of North Bass island to winter. 'The grass grew high, and not being cut lopped down and made good feed. I chased a young steer with the ax to kill him, but he was too wild, so I loaded my boat with wood and got it on board. This was the last day of December. Wish- ing myself a happy New Year, I retired to sleep the Old Year out and the New Year in. In the morning when I awoke the vessel was rolling and pitching into a head sea. As I looked out on deck I found a dreary, foggy rain and sleety north-easter. I could see nothing around me, but as I had taken the exact bearings of the west end of Kelley's island and the hill of ice piled upon Gull island, I was not deterred from getting under way. After an hour's heaving on the windlass the chain was short enough to make sail, so I hoisted a single-reefed mainsail and foresail, guyed my main boom to starboard, also my helm in order that she would cast off with the port tacks aboard. With gib and stays all ready to hoist, I hove away at the windlass and was soon under way, flying along--but dreading a body of ice to fetch me up. As it was the center board was solidly frozen down for 8 or 10 ft. below her bottom, and she struck the bottom on the end of Gull shoal only once. It kept me looking to watch the compass and peer in through the fog, expecting every moment to collide with ice or something else. I got a flat calm and found myself so close to the north-west point of Kelley's island that the centerboard struck slightly. But with a port helm she ran into the breeze again and in half an hour she was to an anchor under the south-west point of Kelley's island. The boat which I towed was hauled alongside. With a pair of oars and the vessel's compass I skulled a north-east by east course and fetched up on Carpenter's point against the sharp cutting sleet I walked down to the store, which, as it was New Year's day, was filled up by the islanders, and a general hand shake followed. A thousand questions followed as to who, when, where and how. Finally a loud cheer. Well, a lot of the boys, after agreeing not to claim any salvage or pay otherwise, went out with me and beat in to Carpenter's dock on the south-west point of the island. One remained on the dock with a fog horn. Her centerboard took me four days to thaw out so I could haul her in behind the ell of the dock for safety. It may be interesting to state that Mr. Beecher, first marine attorney at law, called by all mankind then: Blind Beecher, advised me to have the vessel appraised by three disinterested men, advertising her for salvage. 'T'his I did. She was valued at $6,000. T'wo days afterward John Minor came down, and his downcast look (knowing that a demand from me would cause him to lose two-thirdseof all he owned, as salv- age was ruled by the risk of life and danger of total loss of the property) so played upon my sympathy that I agreed to accept the meager sum of $300. SHIP BUILDING AT NEWPORT NEWS. _Neweort News, Va., Aug. 20--The new monitor Arkansas, which has just been completed by the Newport News Ship Build- ing & Dry Dock Co., and was given a highly successful official trial several days ago under the eyes of the naval board of in- spection and survey, will be placed in commission about Sept. 1, and Com'dr. Vreeland will command the vessel. The Ar- kansas, like all other ships turned out by the Newport News Co., greatly exceeded her contract speed. The battleship Illinois, which was required to make 16 knots an hour, reeled off an average of 17.45 knots an hour on a three hours' run. 'This is the largest excess of speed ever earned by a ship built for the government. For a run of only about five minutes the Arkansas was pushed, and on that knot-run she sped along at the rate ot 12.95 knots an hour. 'The monitor was taken first to the new Bar- ren island trial course in Chesapeake bay, and there the progressive standardizing trial took place, this being for the purpose of stan- dardizing the vessel's screws. Eight times the ship was run over the measured course at four different rates of speed, lastly running at the maximum. Had the ship been sailed for a longer time it is probable that she would have attained a much higher rate of speed. The following day 'the Arkansas was taken to sea for the two hours' endurance trial. The ship was headed out to sea and, without being forced at all, she averaged easily 12.25 knots an hour, which is .7 more than the contract requires. 'The ship worked beautifully, and on her return Com'dr. Vreeland, the members of the trial board and Gen. Supt. W. A. Post of the ship building company expressed their pleasure at her conduct, which could not have been better. Word has been received at the ship yard of the arrival at San Francisco of the new Pacific Mail steamship Korea, which sailed from here about fifty-four days ago on her maiden voyage, going around the horn. The Siberia, sister of the Korea, is rapidly nearing completion and will be ready to go out on her builder's trial in a few days. The steamships S. V. Luckenbach and the Harry Luckenbach, _ which will be converted into oil tank steamers, are at the ship yard and the preliminary work is being pushed as rapidly as pos- _ sible. The steamship Kearney, formerly in the government trans- port service, and recently converted at the navy yard into an en- gineers' training ship for the young engineers who are students at the government school in Washington, has been given a suc- cessful trial and has been turned over to the government. The Kearney is now at Washington, where she will be stationed. The naval collier Abarenda, Capt. Kimball, has arrived at the navy yard, having been relieved as supply ship on the Samoan station. She left Pago Pago May 29, and her voyage was un- eventful. She will be converted into a naval machine ship, something on the order of the old Vulcan, which did good service during the Spanish-American war. Proceedings have begun in Washington for the condemna- tion of land for the extension of the navy yard. Gen. Edgar Allan, United States district attorney, who was here a few days ago, stated that he had been directed to begin proceedings at once for the acquisition of the new land, which will cost the govern- ment in the neighborhood of $250,000. Plans and specifications have been prepared for a 600-ft. dry dock, and in order to build the basin it will be necessary to have more land for the removal of some of the shops. 'The dock will cost $1,500,000. Work on the $100,000 marine barracks to be erected at St. Helena will begin shortly. The collier Cesar, now at the navy yard, will undergo repairs to the extent of $12,000. The collier Nero is also being overhauled. 'The converted yacht Wasp has arrived for exten- sive repairs. SAILING DIRECTIONS. Books of sailing directions of great lakes, issued by the United States hydrographic office and now complete as to all the lakes, are sold at such low prices that they are very much in demand, especially by the young men aboard the vessels. These books not only contain sailing directions and complete informa- tion as to lights, fog signals, etc., but are also valuable on account of parts dealing with the compass, the barometer, and other sub- jects of interest to the mariner. There are four books and three supplements (the latter bringing them up to date) and the whole lot, covering the entire chain of lakes and connecting rivers, sell for $1.90. They could not be published as a private enterprise for ten times that amount, but of course the government simply asks for cost of printing. Any or all of these books may be had from Tue Marine Review Pub. Co.