Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 6.djvu/213

 PAWCETT V. STEAM TOW-BOAT L. W. MOBOAN. . 201 �that evening the Boaz grounded her tow three miles belov7 Pittsburgh, on a bar which lies opposite the foot of Brunot's island, and is distant therefrom about 360 feet. It was then dark, and the pilot of the Boaz had erroneously calculated her position in the stream in respect to the bar. Soon after the tow grounded, the steam-boat Mary Davidge, in deseend- ing the river, struck the grounded tow, crippling one of the biirges and driving the Boaz and her tow further upon the bar. At the then stage of water the tow-boat channel hags the foot of Brunot's island and runs near the south- western shore of the river at McKees's r c]:s, sitr.ate a few hundred feet below tlifl island, the channel there making a short tum to the right below the bar. A strong current at that stage of water prevails at the foot of the island. �Within an hour after the grounding of the Boaz, two ascend- ing steam-boats came to her relief and took from the bar four of the barges, which, by the direction of the captain of the Boaz, they plaeed at shore about 250 feet below the "knuckle" of McKee's rocks. The Boaz herself took the crippled barge and one other barge to the same shore. Three of the stranded barges remained fast on the bar. At firat the six barges at shore lay two abreast, but during the night, and before the disaster hereafter to be mentioned, they were plaeed three abreast. They were each 24 feet in width, and the inside barge lay some distance out from the shore, but how far is not accurately shown. Some of the witnesses say 20 feet, others 60 feet. Tt is^ however, in my judgment, clearly proved that these barges lay in the way of tow-boats going out on that rise, and in a position of peril both for the barges themselves and descending tows by reason of the extrem& danger of the latter coming in collision with the barges. �There was a safe landing at Neville station, one mile be- low, to which the five uninjured barges might have beea taken in about one hour's time, and a proper landing for the crippled barge on the side of the river opposite MoKeo's rocks. The assisting steam-boats would have taken the fiv» barges to Neville station if requested. The captain and pilot of the Boaz, however, did not at first know the eztent of th» ��� �