Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1879-02-18

number of merchants in Amsterdam and
Rotterdam united together for the hazard
Gus experiment of running steamships
between the Netherlands and the West
Indies. Accordingly, they had steamer
built on the Clyde, named the Curacao,
Of $50 tons and 100 horse power, and de-
spatched her, in the summer of 1929, for a
first trip from Amsterdam to the Dutch
West Indies. The voyage to and from
was repeated several times, with great
commercial success; but, nevertheless,
the enterprise soon came to an end. 1t
did so chiefly on account of the soundings
of alarm that arose on all sides against
steam navigation. 1t was decried by al
most all persons deemed to be competent
to have judgment in the matter, as an
undertaking utterly foolish in itself, and
beyond hope of practical attainment. The
majority of so-called men of science were
foremost in denouncing Atlantic steam
navigation, showing, by elaborate arrays
OF figures and OF arguments, the impossi-
bility of such feeble thing as a 'whiff of
steam to combat the tremendous power
of wind, waves and tides, and predicting
dire calamities if such attempts were per-
severed in. The effect of these evil fore
bodings became visible in the temporary
cessation of further Atlantic steam trips.
While nine years had elapsed from the
first voyage of the Savannah to that of the
Curacao, full ten years were to go by till
another steamer was sent across the broad
Atlantic. For the first time the start was
on the British side. At ten O'Clock in the
morning of Wednesday, the 4th of April,
1888, the steamship Sirius, Lieutenant
Rfha p ,ha, la4t r do,
for New York, with ninety four passen-
gers on board. An immense crowd on
shore greeted with their hurrahs the de-
parture of the first English steamer for
America as she slowly glided down the
Thames.
The Sirius, vessel of 700 tons register,
with engines of 800 horse power, built by
Thomas Wingate, of Glasgow, was not
destined originally for Atlantic navigation.
Her construction was due to a small joint
stock association, called the St. George
Steam Navigation Company, with the in
tention of establishing line between
London and Cork. On this route the
Sirius was first placed, with excellent
effect, her performances being so good as
to create the delighted surprise of all per-
sons interested in steamships This led
to an important consequence. Among the
few persons in England who had faith at
that time in ocean steam navigation was
Mr.. M Gregor Laird, Of Liverpool, brother
of the late Mr.. John Laird, NJ P, for
Birkenhead, who had become known as
the leader OF stout controversy on the
subject, maintaining his ground well
against host of would-be scientific
antagonists. Among the latter was DR.
Dionysius Lardner, the well-known COM
piler of a number of scientific treaties.
He laid it down, in his great "Encyclo-
p@dia, as an absolute rule, perfectly
indisputable, that the proje It of building
steamers to cross the Atlantic was quite
absurd, and, the more to enforce this
dogma, the learned doctor took the trouble
of running down to Liverpool and lectur-
ing an audience, when hearing that a
company, projecting to build Atlantic
steamships, was about to be established in
the growing town on the Mersey. A part
Of the curious lecture of the distinguished
ency yclop9dist has been preserved in the
Liverpool Albion of December IA, 1885,
which gave report oft. After dwelling
on storms, trade winds and all kinds of
natural phenomena" on sea, earth and
sky, DR.. Lardner thus pithily expressed
himself about Atlantic steam navigation:
''As to the project, he exclaimed, (which
is announced in the newspapers, of max
ing the voyage directly from New York
TO Liverpool, it is, have no hesitation Of
saying, perfectly chimerical, and you
might as well talk of making voyage
from New York or Liverpool to the
moon This was as decided as strong;
but Mr.. M Gregor Laird, doughty Scot,
had nevertheless no fear to attack the
great authority. He did so in remarka-
BILE letter to the Liverpool Albion, signed
''Chimera, in which he demolished, one
by one, all the arguments of DR.. Lardner
against ocean steam navigation. The
principle of these, aside of natural pheno-
mena" fancies, was chat, even if steamers
could be constructed to brave the dangers
of the Atlantic, their whole space would
have to be filled with coal, to the exclu-
sion of any other cargo, as well as of pas
sengers. Being practical shipbuilder
and engineer, it was easy for Mr. Laird to
prove that all that DIR. Lardner had said
about the necessity of filling steamers
entirely with coal was absolutely non
sense; he told him SO most distinctly,
though in the politest form, The letter
OF 'Chimera" created great impression,
gaining over not few influential men in
Liverpool previously prejudiced against
ocean steam navigation. One of the i'm
mediate consequences was the establish
ment of company for starting line of
steamers from the Mersey to New York.
1t received the title of the British and
North American Steam Navigation Com
pany." The formation of the undertak-
ing was somewhat sudden, owing to the
ancient rivalry between Liverpool and
Bristol. The city on the Avon, ancient
home Of the American trade, had been
bestirring itself for some time to get steam
navigation with the United States, and a
number Of wealthy merchants, it was
known, were constructing ship Of extra
ordinary dimensions to be the pioneers of
the new line. 1t was this which fired
the Liverpool ship-owners, with sudden
energy, and, headed by Mr.. M'Gregor
Laird, they decided to take the field before
their Bristol rivals. There was no time
to build steamer in any way like the one
constructing for Bristol, and they there
fore decided to purchase the best existing
one. This was, by unanimous consent