Page:Federal Reporter, 1st Series, Volume 8.djvu/860

 846 FSDEBAIi BBPOBTBB. �of her the barge St. Nicholas. The Syracuse, with her tow, was going up the river. The George A. Hoyt, with her tow, was eoming down. The day was fine and clear. The wind was light and westerly. The collision was about 11 o'clock in the forenoon. The libel is brougiit against the George A. Hoyt, the Syracuse, and the Jane L. Newton, but is only prosecuted against the George A. Hoyt. It charges her with too great speed, with not keeping well over on the west side of the river, and with taking a sudden and unnecessary sheex acroas the stern of the Syracuse tow after passing it, so as to bring the hawser under the bottoms of the beats in tow of the Syra- cuse, thereby bringing the schooner Jane L. Newton, which was on the port side of the first tier in the tow of the George A. Hoyt, into collision, first with the Tompkins, then with the Washington, doing her great injury, and then with the St. Nicholas. �The libel alleges that the tide was ebb. The answer avers that it was strong flood. There is no doubt upon the evidence, however, that the flood-tide had been running for an hour or two. The libellants insist'tiiat the George A. Hoyt was not over on the west side of the riyer ; but on this point, also, the testimony is clearly with the steam- boat. -She had been eoming down, keeping as. close as was prudent to the west bank, proceeding very slowly against a head-tide, and when the Syracuse and her tow came round the lamp at West Point the Hoyt and her tow were at that part of the river called Moore's f olly, beading'dowh towards the govemment dock, and as close to the west side of the channel as it is usual for tugs with tows to be. �The libel alleges that the Syracuse, with her tow, hugged the west- ern side of the river after turning the point. Upon the trial this was clainied by libellants' proctors to be a clerical error, and it was claimed that the intention was to allege that she was hugging the eastern i.ia.e of the river. The libellants' application to amend was reserved till the cause should be heard, with ieave then to ask for the amendment if the proofs should warrant it. �The testimony shows that the Syracuse, with her tow, was follow- dug aiiother steara-boat, theCeres, also with a tow, and was rapidly ■overtaking her. The Geres first turned the point at the lamp, and when the Syracuse turned the point as she did, well over towards the western side of the river, and opened this reach of the river, which there ttims nearly west, she had in sight the George A. Hoyt with her tow, stretching along the west bank by Moore's Folly, the Ceres and her tow, heading up for Magazine point, on the opposite bank of the river, a schooner eoming down before the wind, and another ��� �