from Herbert Asbury's Gangs of New York, 1929
Recently the New York Times on its “Answers to Readers’ Questions About New York” blog was asked, “Can you tell me anything about a Hudson River pirate named Sadie the Goat?” Sadie’s tale is worth retelling, whether or not she ever existed.
Sadie Farrell began her career as a thief in New York’s Bloody Fourth Ward in the late 1860s. She earned her nickname, Sadie the Goat, for head butting her victims in the stomach. She apparently had a running feud with Gallus Mag, the 6-foot bouncer of a Water Street dive called the Hole-in-the-Wall, who had raised ear-biting to a fine art. Gallus would drag troublemakers out to the street by one ear clenched in her teeth. In a fight with Gallus Mag, Sadie had one ear bitten off. Galllus kept the trophy in a pickling jar. Continue reading
Last week 
The tank barge Waldhof which capsized a month ago in the Rhine River near Lorelei Rock was finally raised today after its cargo of sulfuric acid was allowed to slowly drain off. Two sailors where lost in the capsize. One of the bodies was found inside the barge cabin. The second sailor remains missing and is presumed drowned. The barge has now been towed to a safe harbor close by. The capsized barge has severely restricted commercial travel on the Rhine River, Europe’s busiest inland water way.
Happy Valentines Day! Yesterday, the 
One of the wonderful and maddening things about the internet is that we all make so many virtual acquaintances; many who become good friends, and yet who we have met only through the ether of web pages and email. It was, therefore, a real pleasure last Friday evening to sit down, in the flesh, and share a drink or two or – well perhaps, it is best not to specify the specific numbers of drinks – with a group of water bloggers from in and around New York. In no particular order, there was Will van Dorp of the 
In response to our post, 
Record crowds, possibly exceeding 100,000, are expected at the 
Rear Admiral Peter Branson, who died recently at age 86, had an illustrious career in the Royal Navy. His career almost ended before it began. Branson was twice torpedoed while he was still under training, on one occasion surviving five days adrift in a lifeboat off the coast of Africa.
