HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1975-02-13, Page 4•
PAGE 4--GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 1975
"Tug" -of -war settles dispute forever
"1 can think of no one else-
but
lsebut Big Bill Forrest who
would dream up a tug-of-war
between two goodsized SAFETY VALVE DOWN
steam tugs, as a method of -
settling, once and for all, the Billy Murdock, chief
much -disputed , relative engineer of the Forrest.,,
merits of the two yessels,, as screwed down the safety
argued .by their proud valve so that his boiler
'owners." would carry ,. ted, pounds.
Contractor. C.J. . Be9- higher steam pressure that
mingham, whose recollec- the boiler certificate would
tions of Forrest were carry ten pounds higher
related, in, part, in a { steams pressure ' that the
previous issue •of'the Signal- boiler certificateallowed,
Star, _wrote_. of a sporting but he felt that this was not
'event in Goderich harbor, very dangerous because of
rur, off in the presence of a the large safety factor. I am
considerable. crowd of pretty sure big Bill either
townsfolk,
either tug was in.. danger . of
rolling over.
knew about this as suspected
"For years," he relates in it, but he closed' his eyes to
it. Possible . the Marlton's
engineer did likewise - who
knows. When all was. ready,
and the towline made fast
each:tug worked ahead' dead
s ► w until the slack was
tak • n up and the Forrest had
he nose at the starting flag.
short starting whistle was
blown by the tug Edward
Blame,' which was standing'
by, and the contest was on.
"Great clouds of black
smoke poured from the
funnels of both tugs, as the
firemen, who had hand
picked the fuel to be used,
poured, o the coal. I
stronglyw' s1Si`that Fred,
his memoirs, "t a dredging
firm of Marlton a • Horton
and the partner, ip of
Bermingham &‘. F•o st
marine contractors, ha
worked side by side in.
Goderich harbor. They were
not competitors, as each
were specialists in their own
field and were the. best
,-,friends ; but each Chad -b- t a
new tug around 1910 to 1912,
and both ships were
designed and built by the
same man, . of timber , con-
struction 'and approximately
the same size. The tug
Marlton had , rather sleek
lines and slighe es•s power
than the W L Forrest, which . the Forrest'sfireman- was ,,.
was wider of beam, with °a liberal with the kerosene can.
rather blunt prow, and 'was as well, as not only smoke
probably a •better heavy- but flame belched from her
weather. ship than . the stack completely removing
Marlton. ° all the paint from it. The
"They had held one race to • water betw.een the two
determine which was - the contestants was a turmoil of
faster, and the Marlton had froth, and both. captains'
won this event hands -down. were leaning from their
Bill maintained that speed wheelhouse doors looking
was not What -they were built aft, with' one hand on, the
for, and, that towing" power steam steering gear con:-
'
on-' was the prime requisite for a trots. Inch by inch, it
tug: To prove the prowess of . .seemed; the Forrest closed
the Forrest in this respect, the gap between the two
Bill bet Mr: Horton• (William . flags while_ the timekeepers
.L: Horton) $100 that the .anxiously: watched, the fif-
F orrest "'could pull , the teen minutes tick, by. When;
Marlton •backwards under time was up. the Forrest's
full power, at the rate of one bow was only about the
-mile per hour. .length ,of herself past the
° "Date of the contest was to finish flag ... but it was
.ht the, afternoon of the first enough to- establish her 'as
clay when the 'lake was too the victor. •
cough for either the dredges. "I suspect. that the local
of the construction equipirient . bootleggers got most of the
to work. When: such a day 'one -hundred dollar bet
arrived, the mor""ming was ' money that ,night, as Cap'ta-ins
given over to preparations by .. Bill Hiscott .of the Forrest
theNtespective,owners and of was busy brewing up a 'fresh
course word got around in supply of smokestack .paint,
town ,,about . the contest, and. consisting of .boiled linseed,
quite a crowd assembled on oil, lamp- black, and brown,
the south pier. ' sugar, while. he, nursed his
"A distance of one-quarter, hangover.
of a mile ' (1320 feet) was . •'
measured off, on the 'north , MacDONALD SCHOONER
pier, 'hnd flags erected at The Bermingham records
each F` end. • .One of the provide a vivid story of the
stipulations of the bet was 'foundering of the schooner
that the towline fastening the Azov .of Goderich, in
tugs.. together.. he_ not more . December, 1910.. In_ these
than 100 feet from the fantail records the name is spelled
of dile tug to the other. This Azolph, but .Azov is the form
., wasdsso that the know-how of . best known here.
handling a tug by the "Back in the days of sail,"
respective captains, would be, Mr. Bermingham's notes
a, factor in the outcome, as commence,' "after the ,turn
the propeller -wash from of the century, Captain'John
each ship would strongly MacDonald, whose nickname
effect the behaviour of the was The Minister," was the
other,and , the Skippers of 'proudand master of
PP owner
each would have to correct the . . two -masted schooner
any tendency to .shear, and 'Azov. She was a wooden hull
go broad -side -On to the other vessel boasting no auxiliary
tug , which could. usually be motive power, 'and was-
' corrected with the rudder, . about, 100 feet in 'length with
provided it hadn't gone too , an 18 or 20 -foot beam.ln the
far. Each captain stationed,$ i: